On January 18, 2010, South Fulton Medical Center opened one of the area’s newest Adult Behavioral Health Services Units. This well-appointed, 20-bed unit provided crisis stabilization, medication management, and 24-hour care to adults ages 18 to 64 with acute, life-threatening psychiatric disorders including, but not limited to:
• Alcohol and drug abuse
• Anxiety
• Bipolar disorder
• Depression
• Dissociative disorders
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Schizophrenia
• Other disorders that impair thought processes
Walter Anderson, M.D., is the Unit’s Medical Director. Most recently, Dr. Anderson served as Program Director for Adult Inpatient Services at Ridgeview Institute. He has been in private practice in metro Atlanta for more than 25 years and previously served as Medical Director of CPC Parkwood Hospital and Chief of Inpatient Psychiatry at Atlanta VA Medical Center. After having obtained his medical degree at Emory University, he completed his residency at The Institute of Living in Hartford, Conn. Dr. Anderson is board certified in psychiatry.
“The new Adult Behavioral Health Services Unit will meet a substantial need in our community,” says Dr. Anderson. “The new Behavioral Health Services Unit provides an alternative to existing adult inpatient facilities. The overriding philosophy of the Unit is to individually address the acute issues of the psychiatric emergency or admitting event, and then provide ongoing support to address the patient’s situation, such as other medical conditions, and family and work dynamics.”
Delivering short-term and intensive treatment in a caring and confidential manner, the South Fulton Behavioral Health Services Unit provides:
• Crisis stabilization
• Diagnostic evaluation
• Family evaluation and education
• Inpatient psychiatric treatment
• Inpatient medically supervised drug and alcohol detoxification
• Inpatient drug and alcohol rehabilitation treatment
• Medication management and education
• Outcome goal setting
• Stress management and relaxation technique groups
• Access to internal medicine, neurology, diagnostic imaging, laboratory, radiology, EEG and EKG services, as needed
“The secure, dedicated unit meets the stringent requirements needed to maintain the safety of every patient, yet is designed with peace and comfort in mind,” says Tracy Wilson, D.S.N., Behavioral Health Services program manager.
The unit is staffed by a multidisciplinary team of experienced professionals representing the primary mental health disciplines:
• Registered nurses
• Social workers
• Substance abuse counselors
• Activities therapists
• Mental health technicians
For more information or a physician referral, please call 404-466-WELL.