CHERRY HILL, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — An addition is being built at Jefferson Hospital in Cherry Hill to provide a separate space dedicated to robust mental health services.
The 4,000-square-foot addition is funded by $4 million from the New Jersey Department of Health.
Assembly majority leader Lou Greenwald said the benefits of this will be two-fold: reducing the strain on emergency rooms and providing targeted care for people suffering from mental health episodes or addiction issues.
According to Jefferson, nearly 1 in 5 people seeking treatment at Jefferson Hospital’s Emergency Department — currently Camden County’s designated crisis center — is there for mental health services.
Providing the appropriate care in the appropriate setting allows ERs to perform their mission of handling medical emergencies, Greenwald said. The new wing will be staffed with mental health providers in a “calming, living-room style environment, away from the Emergency Department, where the busy environment could exacerbate a patient’s situation,” Jefferson added.
“Adjusting the medication for that patient, getting them surrounded by the clinical supports they need, is far less money than having that patient stay inappropriately in an emergency room bed,” Greenwald explained.
He said people will be directed to this new addition if they show up at other nearby emergency departments during a mental health episode.
Construction is expected to be completed in 2027.