WIHI - A Podcast from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement

Scott Zeller, MD, Vice President of Acute Psychiatry, Vituity Robin Henderson, PsyD, Chief Executive, Behavioral Health, Providence Medical Group Oregon and Clinical Liaison, Well Being Trust Vera Feuer, MD, Director of Pediatric Emergency Psychiatry, Northwell Health Mara Laderman, MPH, Director for Innovation, Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI)​   ​For all that emergency departments (EDs) do to stabilize individuals and save lives, they’ve never been the ideal place for patients whose crises are related to behavioral health. EDs are designed to address the most urgent, sometimes life-threatening problems, and then discharge or transfer patients to the appropriate next level of care. If a psychiatric or addiction-related admission is needed, however, there may not be any beds. This often leads to boarding patients in the ED or adjacent hallways for hours, sometimes days. ​   In the US, many blame an underfunded mental health system for the shortage of inpatient beds and an inadequate supply of