NoVA’s first specialized facility for people experiencing mental health crises opens at Inova Fairfax Hospital next week.
The Emergency Psychiatric Assessment, Treatment, and Healing unit, or EmPATH for short, will be “a significant component of Inova’s $161 million emergency department expansion and renovation project,” a news release said.
The unit, the first of its kind in NoVA, opens to patients on Tuesday, November 19. Inova said it is designed “to provide a safe, calming environment for patients.”
Inova said the number of people seeking behavioral health services increased more than 30 percent in recent years, underscoring the need for a calm setting in an emergency room. The emergency room at Inova Fairfax, with nearly 175,000 patients in 2023, is the nation’s fourth busiest ER.
“Navigating a mental health crisis is often overwhelming for patients and families alike, especially in the high-stimulus environment of an emergency room,” said Dr. J. Stephen Jones, president and CEO of Inova. “By investing in EmPATH, we are responding to the needs of our patients and community by taking an innovative approach to care in a supportive setting that is more conducive to healing.”
The unit aims not only to reduce anxiety among those patients but to shorten hospital stays and reduce hospitalizations. Inova said research has shown EmPATH units have shortened stays by eight hours to 16 from 24 and have decreased hospitalizations as much as 70 to 80 percent.
Inova said its EmPATH unit will have a low-stimulus environment; an open, calming interior with group therapy spaces; reduced security; and rapid assessments, stabilization, and discharge within 48 hours.
Expanded Pediatric Emergency Care Coming to Inova Fairfax ER
The EmPATH unit opens ahead of the redesigned, family-friendly Inova Children’s Emergency Room. The ER’s expansion will have a dedicated entrance and welcoming environment tailored to kids. Like the EmPATH unit, it will have “calming features to reduce fear and anxiety, enhancing the emergency experience for children and their caregivers.” There will be a separate reception area in the children’s ER.
The comprehensive pediatric ER at Inova Fairfax opens next month.
Inova said its expanded adult emergency room’s first phase opens on December 10. The ER will aim to streamline care and reduce wait times while supporting a high volume of patients. Once complete, Inova said it will “nearly double patient capacity, with private rooms to support sensitive medical conditions.”
Phase One has 12 additional adult ER rooms and nine ER rooms for behavioral health patients, plus the EmPATH unit.
The fully renovated emergency room is expected to be done in 2028.
Feature image of Inova Fairfax by Mike Ramm
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