People in need of behavioral healthcare have a new option to consider at the Blessing Health System with the introduction of the Blessing Empowerment Self Transformation Center, or B.E.S.T. Self Center. The Center offers partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient programs, known as PHP & IOP services.

Located inside Blessing Hospital at 11th Street, the B.E.S.T. Self Center offers a level of behavioral health services to fill a gap in care in the region. This level of care is more intensive than traditional outpatient treatment but less intensive than inpatient behavioral healthcare.

Patients of the B.E.S.T. Self Center meet with a team of behavioral therapists, nurses, caseworkers, and occupational therapists for four to six hours a day, two to five days a week, Monday through Friday, and go home at night. The program is for adults age 18 and over who are out of high school.

Those treated could include patients with depression, anxiety, and other conditions that impact their daily living, based on their ability to meet admission requirements.

“B.E.S.T. Self Center patients participate in our program voluntarily and actively participate in their treatment to become the best version of themselves through group participation, medication management, and individual therapy,” said Kelli Lunt, MSW, LSCW, program coordinator. “Patients will learn skills to strengthen relationships, improve emotional stability, increase self-awareness, and develop impulse control.”

“The B.E.S.T. Self Center is the next chapter in Blessing’s long history of providing behavioral health care to the region’s residents,” said Maureen Kahn, RN, MHA, MSN, president/chief executive officer, Blessing Health System and Blessing Hospital.

“Because we are the only provider of inpatient behavioral healthcare in 100 miles, and among the few providers of traditional outpatient behavioral healthcare, our services often operate at capacity. Just as people with physical health issues should not have to wait for care and recovery, neither should people with behavioral health conditions,” she continued.

“Demand for behavioral health care services is growing across the country. The B.E.S.T. Self Center is the newest option to meet the needs of the residents of our region,” Kahn concluded.

Referrals to the B.E.S.T. Self Center can be made by any physician, health professional, social service agency, and family member or by the person who needs care.

For more information on the services of the B.E.S.T. Self Center, call 217-214-5665, Monday through Friday 8 am to 4:30 pm.