COLUMBIA, Md. — The Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center Foundation launched a campaign called "Together: Let's Support our Neighborhood Hospital" to raise $3 million to build a new Behavioral Health Unit (BHU) — increasing the size from 1,500 square feet to 7,000 square feet and adding 18 more beds.
The Emergency Department at Johns Hopkins Howard County Medical Center (JHHCMC) is seeing an average of 250 adults and children a month suffering from a mental health issue or behavioral health crisis. With only six beds to accommodate them, wait times can last up to a day for an evaluation – forcing some in mental distress to remain in the emergency department with other nonpsychiatric patients.
"Forty percent of the general population will have a mental issue or behavioral issue at some point in their lives serious enough that they would warrant attention," said Andrew Angelino, M.D., chair of JHHCMC's Psychiatry Department. "Our current space is wholly inadequate. It's too small and it's not very comfortable or conducive to healing."
Campaign organizers are calling on schools, nonprofit organizations, businesses and neighborhoods to participate in the fundraising campaign to expand the Behavioral Health Unit. Two schools – one public and one private – and the top fundraising business will be named Donor Champions and receive a financial award.
"The reason that it's important to invest in your own hospital is that at any given time someone in your family or your friend network will need our services, and it's just a matter of time," said Shafeeq Ahmed, M.D., MBA, JHHCMC president. "The nice thing about the Johns Hopkins Health System is that when you invest in the local hospital that money stays local for that hospital."
The total cost of the BHU is $10.3 million. The state of Maryland has provided $2.6 million in funding, and Howard County funding totals $2 million. Howard County Executive Calvin Ball said it's money well spent.
"Together we can ensure that on some of our most difficult days or the most difficult days of our family members, we can have our neighborhood hospital have the resources that they need to be successful because when they're successful, we're successful," Ball said.
