Hall-Brooke To Open Women’s Unit

WESTPORT — A new 16-bed inpatient unit specifically dedicated to women’s treatment is being created at Hall-Brooke Behavioral Health Services, 47 Long Lots Road, according to Thomas E. Smith, MD, medical director.

Expected to open February 1, the advanced design women’s unit will occupy approximately 10,000 square feet of hospital space and will be staffed by clinical experts versed in the particular needs of women’s mental health and well-being.

“Mental illness can affect women to a greater extent than men due to various biological and social factors,” said Dr Smith. “The Women’s Unit will provide exceptional care for women with mental health problems, especially those with mood and anxiety disorders and issues related to abuse.”

The opening of the Hall-Brooke’s Women’s Unit will complete a continuum of mental health care with a specific gender focus. The unit joins existing women’s mental health services at the newly opened center for outpatient services, 1 Lois Street in Norwalk, for the provision of comprehensive mental health care for women. Together, the inpatient and outpatient services will serve women’s psychiatric needs on all levels, from hospitalization to outpatient day and partial day programs. “There are very few such comprehensive programs tailored to women available in the entire country,” Dr Smith reports.

The unit’s integrated program is tailored to meet the unique needs of a woman and includes psychiatric and medical assessment, diagnosis, and treatment. Rehabilitation therapies also compliment Hall-Brooke’s mind, body, and spirit theme, with emphasis on art, music, and physical exercise programs.

The unit’s specially trained staff understands the mental health needs of women and recognizes the influence of hormones and premenstrual symptoms, reactions to infertility or pregnancy loss, and emotional distress related to life changes, menopause, and illness. Staff members are prepared to deal with psychiatric reactions to rape, sexual abuse, or other traumas, stresses from social roles, and problems in relationships or parenting, Dr Smith explained.

Hall-Brooke’s expanded services for women will require an expansion of staff, Dr Smith notes. Qualified persons are invited to contact George Catalano, director, Human Resources and Support Services, at 203-227-1251, for information.

Hall-Brooke at Lois Street also provides a full range of outpatient services for men, children, and adolescents, as well as the Sunrise Outpatient Detox Program. It is located just off US 1 (the Post Road), near the Westport border with Norwalk, in a 10,000-square-foot facility.

In the year ending June 30, 2005, there were 133 persons from Newtown who used Hall-Brooke’s outpatient services.

Hall-Brooke is a wholly owned subsidiary of St Vincent’s Health Services of Bridgeport and is affiliated with the Department of Psychiatry of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University.