The Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust has committed $20 million to Intermountain Health to expand pediatric behavioral health specialty services in Nevada — one of the largest philanthropic investments of its kind in the state’s history.

The commitment will support the expansion of world-class pediatric behavioral health services, addressing gaps in access to advanced specialty care within Nevada. This commitment also represents significant progress toward ensuring children receive the care they need within their own community.

This collaboration reflects a shared belief between two mission-driven nonprofits: that access to high-quality care should never depend on a family’s ZIP code.

The Helmsley Charitable Trust has made a sustained, multiyear commitment to strengthening Nevada’s healthcare landscape, including prior grants that expanded access to life‑saving ECMO technology, which provides temporary heart and lung support for critically ill patients, across the state. 

Intermountain Health, which has been recognized nationally for excellence in pediatric care and backed by more than a century of children’s hospital expertise, is establishing the groundwork to extend this high standard of healthcare to families in Nevada. This includes a campus with comprehensive world-class services, featuring a 826,600-square-foot standalone children’s hospital.

Walter Panzirer, a Trustee of the Helmsley Charitable Trust, announced the $20 million commitment, which will support a comprehensive behavioral health care model that will expand access, improve continuity of care, and deliver evidence-based treatment across the full continuum of pediatric mental health. 

This commitment will help bring world-class pediatric behavioral healthcare to Nevada, ensuring families can stay together in their community during times of medical crisis.

Youth in southern Nevada will benefit from a comprehensive behavioral healthcare system, Panzirer said. The funding will help establish a centralized continuum of care that ensures patient access to top-notch services and practitioners.

“Many of our children and adolescents navigate behavioral issues, including anger, anxiety, and depression,” Panzirer said. “By providing youth access to equitable and developmentally appropriate services closer to home, Intermountain will strengthen early intervention and reduce reliance on emergency and inpatient care.”

Building on that commitment, Intermountain leaders emphasized how the funding accelerates the community’s momentum to broaden access to advanced pediatric services.

“This generous endorsement helps us to further define and amplify a historic moment in time for children’s health in Nevada,” said David Flood, chief development officer for Intermountain Health and president of the Intermountain Foundation. "Every young person deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life — and today is about very intentionally confronting one of our nation’s greatest healthcare challenges, while celebrating the power and hope that’s created and made stronger when we work together."

This commitment will support Intermountain Foundation’s emerging Nevada Campaign for Kids, a historic effort chaired by Bill and Wendy Hornbuckle. The campaign aims to advance Intermountain’s broader initiative to build a full continuum of pediatric specialty care across the region. By doing so, Intermountain will help keep families together during times of medical crisis and improve health outcomes.

“We’re building world-class behavioral health care, supported by our talented caregivers, and built for children today and for generations to come,” said Mitch Cloward, Region President, Intermountain Health. “This commitment reflects what’s possible when mission-driven organizations work together on behalf of children and families.”

The Helmsley Charitable Trust aspires to improve lives by supporting exceptional efforts in the U.S. and around the world in health and select place-based initiatives. To date, Helmsley has awarded more than $900 million in grants to support rural health in the Upper Midwest and beyond, as well as in two U.S. Pacific territories.

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Intermountain Children’s Health today unveiled the Intermountain Health Primary Children’s Hospital Behavioral Health Center-Taylorsville Campus, bringing vital family-centered mental and behavioral health services – including an always-open walk-in crisis center – to kids and teens needing support.

The new Intermountain Health Primary Children’s Hospital Behavioral Health Center is a 90,000-square-foot facility made possible by a $25 million investment from the State of Utah and philanthropic donations to Primary Promise, Intermountain Health’s historic campaign to build the nation’s model health system for children.

The Behavioral Health Center’s opening marks a leap forward in expanding critically needed mental health services in a state where suicide remains a leading cause of death for youth.

Built on the former Wasatch Canyons campus at 5770 South 1500 West, in Taylorsville, Utah, the new Center opens to kids and families on Saturday, September 6.

“I remember being really scared and worried. When I started coming to Primary Children’s it really helped me,” said Wren, who marked her 12th birthday by cutting the ribbon on the Center after 300 state, community, and Intermountain Health leaders and caregivers sang the birthday song for her. “I want other kids to know that it’s not just them that have worries, and there’s ways to fix it … they’re not the only ones having the hard times.”

Utah, like many states in the nation, is experiencing a pediatric mental health crisis. 

In 2023, 23 percent of Utah high school students seriously contemplated suicide. Nine percent attempted suicide, and 37 percent felt sad or hopeless.

To help meet the need, Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital has increased its behavioral health programs by 78 percent and has served 40 percent more kids in the past five years.

The need for care keeps growing.

In 2024, Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital behavioral health programs helped more than 10,000 kids. They’re expected to help even more this year.

“Each child in our community is an important part of Intermountain’s mission,” said Rob Allen, president and chief executive officer of Intermountain Health. “Every child deserves the chance to thrive and live their healthiest life. They are the hope and promise of the future. This Center is an important part of providing critically needed behavioral health services to Utah’s children and families.”

The new state-of-the art, family-centered facility features:

• Patient rooms where parents can stay overnight with their child. 
• Family-friendly perks like spacious waiting rooms, and a café.
• 50 percent more inpatient beds than the previous facility that can be adapted to each child’s needs. 
• Large outpatient spaces with natural light, quiet rooms, and sensory spaces. 
• A new Crisis Walk-In Center, which is always open.

The Center also includes these free services:

• The statewide Assessment, Referral, Consultation Service (ARCS) service line that connects families to behavioral health resources or an appointment at 385-478-2400.
• The Stabilization and Mobile Response program, which sends a professional to your home to help a child or teen. It’s available by dialing 988 or using the SafeUT app.

“Family-centered care is critical to kids’ healing, and this building is designed for families,” said Amanda Choudhary, president of the Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital-Taylorsville Campus and leader of the Behavioral Health service line for Intermountain Children’s Health. “Our dedicated teams have been working tirelessly to prepare the facility, and we can’t wait to welcome our first patients.”

Construction on the Center was accelerated thanks to the state’s $25 million appropriation.

“It’s because of the shared commitment of Intermountain Children’s Health, the State of Utah, and supporters of Primary Promise that we are able to answer the emerging needs of a growing pediatric population and open this new Behavioral Health Center,” said Mandy Richards, president of Intermountain Children’s Health and chief nursing executive for Intermountain Health. “We are grateful for the community support that has turned a promise into reality for children across the State of Utah.”

“Children’s behavioral health is one of the most important and challenging issues of our time. The State of Utah is proud to support Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital in this critical endeavor,” Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson said. “The $25 million investment from the state shows that no child or family is alone in their mental health journey. We are all in this together.”

Support of Intermountain Health’s historic Primary Promise campaign to build the nation’s model health system for children created momentum for expanded behavioral health services. Julie and Gregory P. Cook’s family was the first to invest in Primary Promise with a transformational $10 million gift dedicated entirely to enhancing behavioral health services.  

“We have a responsibility to protect kids and provide them with options so that they're not just left to their own devices,” Julie Cook said. “Behavioral Health matters, and a healthy mind starts with a community that cares. All of us can work together to be part of the solution. We knew this was our way to make a difference.”

“If you’ve ever wanted a way to give back to your community and help everyone, this is it,” Gregory Cook said. “We invite everyone to partner with us, and give to Primary Promise. Contribute to lifesaving and life-changing advancements for kids everywhere. Every day we delay is a missed opportunity to help a child thrive. With stakes this high, we cannot hesitate.”

The Behavioral Health Center will provide spaces for clinical expertise, and a “safe place to land” for parents, guardians and family members of patients, said Teresa Glade, whose daughter, Rachel, was helped at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital.

Rachel has had multiple heart, lung, gastrointestinal, and feeding therapies, among other treatments and surgeries from the day she was born and throughout her life. She is also hard of hearing.

“I know this was difficult for everyone around me, but I understand now that I was hurting deeply and needed, somehow, to get that out,” Rachel shared at the ribbon-cutting in American Sign Language. “I had suffered through a ton of medical trauma, and on top of that, I couldn’t hear the voices that tried to comfort me.”

Rachel is now 23. She graduated from cosmetology school and works at her family business. She enjoys doing hair and makeup, hiking, spending time with her boyfriend, and eating her favorite foods. 

“It is incredibly important for kids to receive mental health support when they are young so that they can enter adulthood with life skills,” Rachel said. “I am so thankful for all of the years Primary Children’s has been there for me with my medical and behavioral health needs, and I am so happy this new campus will be able to provide further support for countless children and teens for decades to come.”

For information about behavioral health services, visit primarychildrens.org/behavioralhealth.

To give, visit primarypromise.org.

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NOTE TO MEDIA: Images and video available upon request.

Como parte del Mes de concientización sobre la salud mental en mayo, el Park City Hospital de Intermountain Health conducirá un evento de concientización sobre la salud mental el martes, 20 de mayo de 6 a 7 p. m., en el Blair Education Center del hospital.

El enfoque del evento es La neurodivergencia: percepciones con desafíos; dando forma a la compresión de esta condición.

Dos clínicas locales, Intermountain Health’s Psychiatry and Counseling Clinic in Park City and Solstice Counseling and Wellness en la ciudad de Heber, están trabajando en conjunto para alcanzar un mejor entendimiento y reducir el estigma de pedir ayuda para la salud conductual en la comunidad.

Los temas que se incluirán son: los trastornos del espectro autista, el trastorno de hiperactividad y déficit de atención (ADHD, por sus siglas en inglés) y el trastorno obsesivo-compulsivo (OCD, por sus siglas en inglés), y como estas condiciones comunes pueden afectar a las personas, cuáles son las opciones de tratamiento disponibles, y cuáles son algunas de las estrategias para interactuar con las personas que padecen estos trastornos o condiciones.

Los participantes incluirán al psicólogo Shawn Miller, PhD, propietario de Solstice Counseling and Wellness; Colton Miller, PhD, psicólogo para la Health’s Psychiatry and Counseling Clinic de Intermountain Health; y tres candidatos a PhD quienes son practicantes en psicología: Lanie Bellan y Kyndal Edwards de Intermountain Health y Ryan O’Keefe de Solstice.

Después de tres breves presentaciones en cuanto a estos temas, habrá una sesión de preguntas y respuestas con los profesionales médicos.

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As part of Mental Health Awareness Month in May, Intermountain Health Park City Hospital is hosting a free mental health awareness event on Tuesday, May 20 from 6-7 pm in the Blair Education Center at the hospital.

The focus for the event is Neurodivergence: Challenging Perceptions, Shaping Understanding.

Two local clinics – Intermountain Health’s Psychiatry and Counseling Clinic in Park City and Solstice Counseling and Wellness in Heber City – are coming together to build better understanding and reduce the stigma of seeking behavioral health care in the community.

Topics will include autism spectrum disorders, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and how these common conditions can interact in people, what treatment options are available, and some strategies for interacting with people who have these disorders or conditions.

Participants will include psychologist Shawn Miller, PhD, owner of Solstice Counseling and Wellness, Colton Miller, PhD, a psychologist with Intermountain Health’s Psychiatry and Counseling Clinic, and three PhD candidates who are interns in psychology: Lanie Belland and Kyndal Edwards from Intermountain Health and Ryan O’Keefe from Solstice.

After the three short presentations on those topics there will be a question and answer opportunity with the providers.
 

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Intermountain Health Integrated Addiction Medicine clinic has expanded and moved to a new location to better serve the needs of western Colorado residents.  

The Grand Junction Integrated Addiction Medicine Clinic (AIM Clinic) provides medical and behavioral health services that are closely aligned on an outpatient basis to patients. Care tailored to individuals includes addiction treatment, intensive outpatient treatment, medication-assisted treatment, and specialized care for pregnant women and new mothers. 

The clinic has moved to a new, larger space with Intermountain Health St. Mary’s Regional Hospital to better accommodate the growing needs of our patients and to expand our service offerings.  

With the new location, the clinic will be launching an adolescent intensive outpatient program starting June 9, which will be the only in-person intensive outpatient program for youth in the western Colorado area.  

“Intermountain is dedicated to taking care of all people and has created a safe, beautiful place for an often marginalized group of people to heal,” said Ryan Jackson, MD, senior medical director for behavioral health. “People don’t have to be afraid of being judged, stigmatized or shamed because of their substance use. Our job is to come alongside and help you get what you want out of life.” 

Ed Chandler, a current patient with the clinic, shared his experiences and credited the program for saving his life. 

Chandler struggled with alcoholism and the toll it took on his career and personal life. He said being able to address his addiction as well as other behavioral health concerns has given him a better outlook on life.  

This initiative is funded by nearly $1 million in grants from the State of Colorado, Mesa County’s Opioid Abatement Council, and The Steadman Group. 

It is aimed at addressing substance use and mental health disorders in Western Colorado and for adolescents. These grants were instrumental in enhancing the clinic and providing critical support to families who previously had to travel to Denver or Salt Lake for similar services. 

Learn more about the Grand Junction Integrated Addiction Medicine Clinic at intermountainhealth.org. 

LAS VEGAS. Intermountain Health ha dado a conocer su estrategia de implementación de salud comunitaria, en la que se describe un plan integral para mejorar los resultados sanitarios de las poblaciones más vulnerables del sur de Nevada.

La estrategia se basa en los resultados de la primera Evaluación de las Necesidades de Salud Comunitaria (CHNA, por sus siglas en inglés) de Intermountain en el sur de Nevada, que identificó el bienestar mental, los determinantes sociales de la salud, el acceso a la atención médica, las enfermedades crónicas y la mejora del bienestar de los niños y las familias como necesidades de salud importantes.

En el informe de la CHNA, se proporcionaron amplios detalles sobre el estado, las necesidades y los activos de salud locales que permiten que el sistema sanitario sin fines de lucro informe e identifique las principales prioridades de salud del área local. Intermountain creó esa evaluación inicial después de involucrar a organizaciones que representaban una amplia gama de intereses en la comunidad del sur de Nevada. Los participantes concedieron entrevistas detalladas para compartir sus perspectivas sobre las necesidades sanitarias a fin de ayudar a priorizar el trabajo de Intermountain Health para colaborar con otras personas en la mejora de la salud comunitaria.

“La estrategia de implementación nos proporciona un marco claro como sistema para abordar estas importantes necesidades de salud en colaboración con nuestra comunidad”, comentó Will Rucker, director de Intermountain Community Health en Nevada. “Si aprovechamos nuestros recursos y trabajamos junto con las principales partes interesadas, podemos tener un impacto medible en la salud y el bienestar de nuestros vecinos más vulnerables”.

A continuación, se mencionan las áreas de interés y las tácticas que Intermountain implementará en colaboración con los socios comunitarios. La lista completa está disponible en el documento Estrategia de implementación.

Mejorar el bienestar mental

·       Reducir las muertes por suicidio

·       Reducir los trastornos de salud mental frecuentes en adultos y jóvenes

·       Reducir el impacto del abuso de sustancias

La estrategia de implementación de Intermountain incluye capacitaciones, recursos, educación, financiación para grupos comunitarios y colaboración con coaliciones y grupos de trabajo.

“Un ejemplo de este trabajo es la reducción del acceso a medios letales mediante la distribución de aproximadamente 575 candados para armas desde el pasado mes de junio a los socorristas y a otras organizaciones con el fin de que las entreguen a las familias”, afirmó Lisa Nichols, vicepresidenta de Community Health. “Hemos comprobado que separar en tiempo y distancia a un medio tan letal como un arma de fuego de una persona que atraviesa una crisis puede salvarle la vida”.

Mejorar los resultados sanitarios crónicos y evitables

·       Prevenir la presión arterial alta y la diabetes

·       Aumentar las tasas de inmunización

·       Reducir las lesiones de los niños 

Intermountain Health se ha comprometido a reforzar la colaboración con las organizaciones locales que trabajan para prevenir la diabetes y la presión arterial alta, reducir las lesiones de los niños y aumentar las tasas de inmunización.

El año pasado, Intermountain Children’s Health colaboró con Nevada Highway Patrol, SafeKids del condado de Clark y los socorristas para concienciar a Nevada sobre los peligros de dejar a los niños en un automóvil a temperaturas elevadas. Intermountain también colaboró con SafeKids del condado de Clark, así como con el Healthy Living Institute del University Medical Center (UMC, por sus siglas en inglés), para concienciar sobre el aumento de las peligrosas falsificaciones de sillas de automóviles.

Abordar los determinantes sociales de la salud e invertir en ellos

·       Mejorar el acceso y la coordinación de la atención social

·       Invertir en viviendas asequibles y mejorar la seguridad alimentaria

·       Aumentar la cobertura y el acceso a la atención médica

Una estrategia clave para mejorar la salud comunitaria es reforzar el programa de trabajadores de salud comunitaria (CHW, por sus siglas en inglés) de Nevada. A través de una colaboración con Nevada Community Health Workers Association, estamos apoyando el desarrollo de la fuerza laboral para ampliar este rol vital. Los CHW son profesionales de la salud pública capacitados que sirven de puente entre su comunidad y los recursos sanitarios y sociales esenciales. Gracias a su experiencia vivida y a sus profundos vínculos con la comunidad, ayudan a derribar las barreras que impiden la salud y el bienestar de las personas de mayor riesgo.

Mejorar el bienestar de los niños y la familia

·       Mejorar la seguridad de los niños y las familias

·       Prevenir lesiones

·       Defender a los niños y las familias

Intermountain Health se ha comprometido con la salud física y mental de los niños y sus familias. Este trabajo incluye la colaboración con grupos comunitarios, la interacción con funcionarios locales y estatales y la aplicación de programas basados en pruebas para mejorar los resultados de la salud infantil en todo el sur de Nevada.

Como parte de este compromiso, Intermountain Health anunció el pasado octubre sus planes de construir el primer hospital infantil independiente de Nevada. Se prevé que el centro, situado en el Research and Technology Park de la Universidad de Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV, por sus siglas en inglés), esté terminado en 2030 y ofrezca atención pediátrica especializada para satisfacer las crecientes necesidades de la región.

La CHNA actual de Intermountain abarca el período de 2022 a 2025. Se está trabajando en la próxima CHNA, que orientará las prioridades de salud comunitaria para los tres años siguientes. El equipo de Intermountain Community Health está colaborando con socios para evaluar las necesidades de salud emergentes con el fin de asegurarse de que la próxima evaluación refleje los activos y oportunidades actuales para el sur de Nevada. 

“Nuestro compromiso con Nevada tiene como base la compasión y la colaboración. Las Evaluaciones de las Necesidades de Salud Comunitaria y la estrategia de implementación nos ayudan a identificar necesidades de salud importantes y a respaldar el increíble trabajo que ya se está realizando. Nuestro rol consiste en conectar las piezas para llenar los vacíos y que nadie quede en las brechas. Nevada, estamos aquí para ayudar. Si trabajamos en conjunto, podemos construir un futuro más saludable para todos”, afirmó Rucker.

Todas las CHNA y estrategias de implementación de Intermountain Health pueden consultarse aquí.
 
 

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Intermountain Health released its Community Health Implementation Strategy, outlining a comprehensive plan to improve health outcomes for southern Nevada’s most vulnerable populations.

The strategy builds on findings from Intermountain’s first Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) in Southern Nevada, which identified mental well-being, social determinants of health, healthcare access, chronic diseases, and improving children and family well-being, as significant health needs.

The CHNA report provided extensive details about local health status, needs, and assets that allow Intermountain Health, a nonprofit health system, to inform and identify key local area health priorities. 

That initial assessment was created by Intermountain after engaging organizations that represented a broad range of interests in the Southern Nevada community.

Participants gave in-depth interviews to share their perspectives on health needs to help prioritize Intermountain Health’s work to collaborate with others in improving community health.

“The implementation strategy provides us with a clear framework as a system to address these significant health needs in collaboration with our community,” said Will Rucker, community cealth director for Intermountain Health in Nevada. “By leveraging our resources and working alongside key stakeholders, we can make a measurable impact on the health and well-being of our most vulnerable neighbors.”

The following are areas of focus and tactics that Intermountain will deploy in collaboration with community partners. The full list is available in the Implementation Strategy document. 

1. Improving Mental Well-Being

·       Reduce suicide deaths

·       Reduce frequent mental health distress in adults and youth

·       Reduce the impact of substance misuse

Intermountain’s implementation strategy includes trainings, resources, education, funding for community groups, and collaborations with coalitions and workgroups.

“One example of this work is reducing access to lethal means by distributing approximately 575 gun locks since last June to first responders and other organizations to get out to the families,” Lisa Nichols, vice president of Community Health, said. “Because we have seen proof that creating time and distance to such a lethal means as a firearm with a person going through a crisis can save their life.”

Improving Chronic and Avoidable Health Outcomes

·       Prevent high blood pressure and diabetes

·       Increase immunization rates

·       Decrease injury for children

Intermountain Health is committed to strengthening collaborations with local organizations working to prevent diabetes and high blood pressure, decrease injury for children, and increase rates of immunization. 

Last year, Intermountain Children’s Health collaborated with Nevada Highway Patrol, SafeKids of Clark County, and first responders to bring vital attention to Nevada about the dangers of leaving children in a hot car. 

Intermountain also worked with SafeKids of Clark County as well as the Healthy Living Institute at UMC to raise awareness about the rise of dangerous counterfeit car seats.

2. Addressing and Investing in Social Determinants of Health

·       Improve social care access and coordination

·       Invest in affordable housing and improve nutrition security

·       Increase healthcare coverage and access

A key strategy in improving community health is strengthening Nevada’s Community Health Worker (CHW) program. Through a collaboration with the Nevada Community Health Workers Association, we are supporting workforce development to expand this vital role. CHWs are trained public health professionals who serve as a bridge between their community and essential health and social resources. With lived experience and deep community connections, they help break down barriers to health and well-being for those most at risk.

Improving Child and Family Well-Being

·       Improve child and family safety

·       Injury prevention

·       Child and family advocacy

Intermountain Health is committed to both the physical and mental health of children and families. This work includes collaborating with community groups, engaging with local and state officials, and implementing evidence-based programs to improve child health outcomes across southern Nevada. 

As part of this commitment, Intermountain Health last October announced plans to build Nevada’s first comprehensive stand-alone children’s hospital. The facility, set to be located in the UNLV Research and Technology Park, is projected to be completed by 2030, providing specialized pediatric care to meet the growing needs of the region.

Intermountain’s current CHNA covers the period from 2022 to 2025. Work is underway on the next CHNA, which will guide community health priorities for the following three years. 

The Intermountain Community Health team is collaborating with partners to evaluate emerging health needs to ensure the next assessment reflects the current assets and opportunities for southern Nevada. 

“Our commitment to Nevada is rooted in compassion and collaboration. The Community Health Needs Assessments and Implementation Strategy helps us identify significant health needs and support the incredible work already happening. Our role is to connect the pieces – filling gaps so no one falls through the cracks. Nevada, we are here for you. By working together, we can build a healthier tomorrow for us all,” Rucker said.

All of Intermountain Health’s CHNA and Implementation Strategies can be found here.

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CredibleMind, Inc., la empresa de bienestar mental, e Intermountain Health, un innovador en la atención médica y un sistema de salud sin fines de lucro en el oeste, anunciaron un acuerdo para ofrecer un recurso digital con el fin de abordar mejor las inquietudes de salud mental.

Como parte de esta nueva sociedad, ahora Intermountain ofrece la plataforma exclusiva de cuidado personal de CredibleMind para comunidades dentro de sus áreas de servicio. La plataforma personaliza decenas de miles de recursos seleccionados por expertos que cubren más de cien temas. 

Crea una experiencia digital altamente personalizada para cada persona en la que se combina el cuidado personal con base en pruebas y evaluaciones validadas con recursos de prestación de atención para brindar una mejor salud mental a la población. 

CredibleMind ofrece recursos para todas las edades al cubrir una amplia gama de etapas de la vida, como la escuela, el trabajo, la paternidad y maternidad, y las relaciones. El sitio web y los recursos también están disponibles en español.

Conforme a los datos de Mental Health America, uno de cada cinco adultos tiene una enfermedad diagnosticable de salud mental cada año. Utah ocupa el puesto más alto en los EE. UU. con más de uno de cada cuatro. El 46 % de los estadounidenses padecerá al menos una enfermedad de salud mental y la mitad de ellos la desarrollará para los 14 años. Más de la mitad de los adultos no recibe tratamiento.

"En los Estados Unidos, se está viviendo una crisis de salud mental en expansión, lo que genera la necesidad urgente de abordar este desafío con soluciones creativas que escalen rápido, con constancia y la calidad más alta”, dijo Mason Turner, MD, director médico sénior del programa clínico de salud mental de Intermountain Health. “Con esta herramienta digital, se ofrecen más maneras de ayudar a las personas de nuestra comunidad a controlar la ansiedad, dormir mejor, aliviar el estrés, vencer el síndrome de desgaste profesional y más. En definitiva, queremos ayudar a las personas para que vivan la vida más saludable posible. Con esta plataforma, estamos brindando recursos gratuitos y de alta calidad para la comunidad”.

“Encomiamos el liderazgo de Intermountain al enfocarse en la salud mental de la comunidad”, expresó Deryk Van Brunt, DrPH, fundador y director ejecutivo de CredibleMind. “La mayoría de los sistemas de salud han clasificado la salud mental como una de sus tres prioridades, pero pocos han encontrado una manera rentable de abordar estas necesidades, a nivel superior y a escala. Creamos CredibleMind para ayudar a organizaciones como Intermountain a lograrlo de manera orientada hacia la comunidad y personalizada para cada paciente”. 

Las personas dentro de las áreas de servicio de Intermountain Health ahora pueden obtener CredibleMind como una herramienta digital de salud mental autodirigida y gratuita desde el sitio IntermountainHealth.CredibleMind.com.

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Acerca de CredibleMind 
Planes de salud líderes, proveedores de programas y más de 100 comunidades alrededor de los EE. UU. confían en CredibleMind para empoderar la salud mental de sus miembros en cualquier momento y en cualquier lugar. Nuestra plataforma digital de salud mental poblacional con base en pruebas escala estudios de detección, prevención, derivaciones e intervención temprana. Al utilizar reglas y recursos personalizados para cada entorno y adaptados a cada persona, creamos un mejor acceso hacia la salud mental. Para obtener más información, visítenos en crediblemind.com. 

CredibleMind, Inc., the Mental Wellbeing Company, and Intermountain Health, a healthcare innovator and not for profit health system in the Intermountain West, today announced an agreement to offer a digital resource to better address mental health concerns. 

As part of this new partnership, Intermountain is now offering CredibleMind’s unique self-care platform to communities across its service areas. 

The platform personalizes tens of thousands of expert-curated resources across over one hundred topics. It creates a highly tailored digital experience for each person, blending evidence-based self-care and validated assessments with care delivery resources to deliver better population mental health. 

CredibleMind offers resources for all ages, covering a wide range of life stages such as school, work, parenting, and relationships. Website and resources are also available in a Spanish version.

According to data from Mental Health America, one in five adults have a diagnosable mental health condition each year. Utah ranks the highest in the US with over one in four. 46% of Americans will have at least one mental health condition with half of those developing by the age of 14. Over half of all adults do not receive treatment. 

"America is experiencing a growing mental health crisis, creating an urgent need to address this challenge with creative solutions that scale quickly, consistently and with the highest quality." said Mason Turner, MD, senior medical director for the Intermountain Health’s Behavioral Health Clinical Program. "This digital tool provides more ways to help people in our communities manage anxiety, sleep better, relieve stress, beat burnout, and more. Ultimately, we want to help people live their healthiest lives possible. With this platform, we are providing free, high-quality resources to our community.”

“We applaud Intermountain’s leadership in focusing on community-wide mental health,” said Deryk Van Brunt, DrPH, founder and CEO of CredibleMind. “Most health systems have ranked mental health as a top three priority, yet few have found a cost-effective way to address these needs, upstream, and at scale. We created CredibleMind to help organizations like Intermountain do so, in a community-oriented, and patient-customized way.”  

Individuals in Intermountain Health’s service area can access CredibleMind now as a free self-directed digital mental health tool by visiting IntermountainHealth.CredibleMind.com

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The new Intermountain Health St. George Regional Hospital Day Treatment Center is opening its doors to address a critical need in pediatric behavioral health care, thanks to community support given to the annual Jubilee of Trees fundraiser.

Intermountain Health and community leaders, joined by a family who lost a child to suicide, participated in a ceremonial ribbon cutting at the new center, a converted home at 409 E. 500 South in St. George, which will offer the Adolescent Behavioral Health Partial Hospitalization Program.

The Intermountain Partial Hospitalization Program offers intensive care and skill building to kids five days a week, each day for the length of a typical school day.

At the end of each day, participants go home to use the skills they learned with their family. The course of treatment is up to 15 days, with the length of stay determined by the youth, their parents, and the program team. The program opens January 28.

“This new center fills an important need in mental health care and will bring hope to kids and families in the St. George area,” said Natalie Ashby, president of Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital. “Thank you to our caregivers, providers and external partners who helped to build this clinic. It takes many, many people to make this happen, and we are grateful for your contributions and dedication to helping children and families.”

The Partial Hospitalization Program comes thanks to community generosity at the 2022 Jubilee of Trees, which raised $1.2 million to support pediatric and adolescent mental and behavioral health services at Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital.

The annual event, hosted by the Intermountain Foundation at St. George Regional Hospital, has raised funds to advance community medical services at the hospital since 1983.

“We are thankful for our community’s giving spirit, which made this Partial Hospitalization Program possible,” said Loriana De Crescenzo, executive director of the Intermountain Foundation at Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital. “The impact of this generosity will be felt for years to come.”

Enhancing behavioral health services for children is part of Intermountain Health’s Primary Promise to create the nation’s model health system for children, and based on significant need. 

In the past decade, emergency departments at Intermountain Health hospitals in Utah recorded a 300 percent increase in pediatric mental health crises. In 2022, St. George Regional Hospital treated about 1,000 patients for mental health reasons alone.

Suicide is the leading cause of death for Utah youth ages 10 to 17. An estimated 40 percent of children who have depression are not getting care. Last year, 43 percent of Utah youth who felt sad, hopeless, or suicidal reported that they did not talk to anyone about it.

“We’re hopeful the new Partial Hospitalization Program can give children and families the care that they need to prevent mental health crises, help our children return to health and thrive,” said Patrick Carroll, MD, neonatologist and medical director of Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital.

Chantel and Colby Peterson hope it can prevent the kind of tragedy that impacted their family.

In 2019, Brooklyn “B” Petersen died by suicide at age 16. She was lively and thoughtful, and excelled academically and in cheerleading, a sport she loved. She had a contagious laugh, and a personality that, like a bright light, drew many to her.

Brooklyn’s stepmom, Chantel, honored Brooklyn’s life by decorating and donating a Christmas tree to the Jubilee of Trees in 2022.

She wanted the beautiful, intricately decorated “Forever B” tree to help raise funds to expand pediatric behavioral and mental health services in the area. She and Colby shared Brooklyn’s story at the Jubilee’s fundraising gala and auction.

What happened next was record-smashing.

The audience was so moved by B’s story, that they together donated an unprecedented $177,000 for the tree, then returned it to the Petersen family to display in their home for the holidays.

“Brooklyn’s love and selflessness bridges both heaven and earth,” her dad, Colby Petersen said. “She is so much more than her ending, however it is our hope that by sharing her story, we may keep her memory alive and advocate for the lives of others affected by mental health and suicide, by instilling value, purpose, and worth on her behalf.”

The new Partial Hospitalization Program addresses a gap in behavioral health services. The program is more intensive than an hourlong outpatient visit with a therapist, and yet not as intense as mental health crisis hospitalization services.

Program participants will receive care from a multi-disciplinary team, including mental health therapists, doctors, and nurses.

Participants will receive care and learn new skills, and their families will learn ways to support their wellbeing. At the end of each day, participants will return to their families to practice their new skills.

“Children are more likely to be successful in treatment when they can apply their experiential learning in a real-world setting in real time,” said Matthew Bradbury, MD, board certified psychiatrist at Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital. “The Partial Hospitalization Program provides those opportunities to participants, and tailors each child’s care and learning to address their individual needs.”

“We invest in our communities, and particularly this community here in Washington County, because it is the right thing to do,” said Cyndi Gilbert, chair of the Intermountain St. George Regional Hospital Board of Trustees. “Intermountain Health’s mission is to help people live the healthiest lives possible, and that starts with making sure everyone has access to mental health services – especially our children.”   

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