(Host) A new wing may be built at Rutland Regional Medical Center to house an expanded psychiatric program.
As VPR’s Ross Sneyd reports, the plan is part of a larger effort to replace the Vermont State Hospital in Waterbury.
(Sneyd) The state has been struggling to close the century-old psychiatric hospital and find new ways to care for Vermonters with the most serious mental illnesses.
A consensus has developed that many people should receive treatment through community mental health programs. And many patients have now moved to those centers.
But it’s been more difficult to settle on a plan for transferring the rest of the patients in Waterbury to specialized psychiatric units at community hospitals.
The plans unveiled in Rutland this week were the first sign of concrete progress for in-patient care.
(Tanzman) "It’s a significant milestone"
(Sneyd) Beth Tanzman is deputy commissioner of mental health.
(Tanzman) "Whenever we’re able to bring forward for public input and discussion a potential option for replacing the Vermont State Hospital.”
(Sneyd) Tanzman is head of planning for a state hospital replacement. She’s been working with officials at Rutland Regional and Fletcher Allen hospitals.
Those institutions would care for some of the 40 to 50 people who are still being treated in Waterbury. Current plans call for another residential treatment facility to be built in central Vermont to complement the hospital care.
Even though plans have been drawn up for a 25-bed unit in Rutland, hospital vice president Larry Jensen says a lot of work remains.
(Jensen) "It is something that is in a very exploratory stage where we’re working with the state of Vermont to put some definitions around size and services and things like that.”
(Sneyd) Legislators decided last year that there was too little progress on the state hospital. So they hired three experts to oversee the administration’s efforts.
Former Human Services Secretary Con Hogan was one of those consultants. He welcomes the tentative plans in Rutland because he thinks it’s a sign that the state is dealing with the problems at the state hospital.
(Hogan) "I think the only open question for the administration and the Legislature to address is how many beds in any given place would be needed to do that well.”
(Sneyd) The Department of Mental Health says that’s something that’s still being discussed.
The Senate Institutions Committee has recommended spending enough next year to produce plans for the central Vermont treatment center.
Talks are still under way with Fletcher Allen officials about how many psychiatric beds they could accommodate.
For VPR News, I’m Ross Sneyd.