What level of psychiatric care do I need?
Choosing the correct level of care is critical in getting appropriate and successful care. In broad terms, levels of psychiatric care include:
Inpatient: A locked unit at a hospital for people who cannot be safely treated in the community. This is appropriate if someone is intent on hurting themselves or their thinking is so disorganized that they cannot take care of their basic needs in the community. Stays at this level of care are generally 3-5 days and focus entirely on addressing acute safety concerns and discharging people from this level of care as quickly as possible. Close observation and 24 hour nursing care are provided as well as daily contact with a physician or nurse practitioner.
Residential: An unlocked therapeutic setting for people who have severe illnesses that cannot be managed on an outpatient basis but who are not so acutely ill that they need the containment and observation of a locked inpatient unit. Stays at this level of care tend to last weeks-months rather than days and give a treatment team the time to get to know patients intimately enough to actually address underlying causes of illness. Being out of the home environment is necessary for many who have difficult family situations or maladaptive behaviors that cannot be managed at home such as eating disorders, severe substance use disorders, OCD or PTSD.
Partial Hospital Program (PHP) /Intensive Outpatient Treatment (IOP): This level of care has traditionally been used to step down from inpatient treatment or step up from routine outpatient care. Patients typically travel from home to an office or hospital setting and receive several hours a day of treatment. Treatment tends to consist of larger groups that are medical or psychoeducational, length of stay tends to be shorter (days to weeks) with clinical focus of medical stabilization and transition to outpatient care. It is uncommon for these programs to have an indepth psychotherapy or clinical focus. These programs tend to be step-downs from inpatient programs at the same institution.
Outpatient: Patients attend appointments with practitioners in their offices or virtually from home. Outpatient care is at its best when it is provided in the context of an ongoing relationship and good connection with a provider who knows the patient’s history and current struggles and provides appropriate frequency of meetings and level of expertise to address the patient’s illness. For many patients who have yet to stabilize and identify key successful aspects to their treatment, outpatient care is fragmented and not frequent enough to help. Outpatient care with multiple providers can also lead to miscommunication and difficulties with coordinating treatment. Many times, patients may benefit from more frequent visits or more intensive outpatient psychotherapy, but these options are not available or not accessible.
MindWork IOP - our program offers a unique opportunity for in-depth psychological and psychiatric assessment and treatment that is built on understanding how the patient’s development has been interrupted or is insufficient to maintain healthy relationships, desired level of functioning and resilience. Our patients attend treatment 5 days a week for 3-5 hours a day in our outpatient office setting. They get to know their treatment team and other patients in an intimate group environment with doctors running more than 10 of the 15 hours of groups a week. Patients who work with us tend to have problem behaviors and unhealthy coping strategies but they are able to manage these safely enough to be able to maintain living in the community. Our patients continue their work with us for weeks and months, engaging in meaningful multidisciplinary treatment while taking steps to engage back into their life, building healthier relationships and finding purpose in school, work, or volunteering.