Hospital gets mental health expansion for kids, expected to be largest in country

CINCINNATI (WKRC) - A hospital expansion in College Hill will soon make Cincinnati one of the largest providers for children who need in-hospital mental health care.

It will not be completed until next year but will provide a whole new level of care for concerns now being seen in kids at younger ages.

The team at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital expanding their services because mental health in kids is in crisis.

“It wasn’t like an active thought like I was going to take my own life, but it always felt like if I wasn't here it would be better,” said Marcia Gause.

Marcia Gause said she felt that crisis and sought counseling after too much isolation in these past pandemic years.

Even before the pandemic began, the CDC found one in five children had a mental health disorder.

But only one in five of those children ever received care from a mental health provider.

Treating these concerns is now a work in progress.

“One of the goals for this building was to be able to give patients their own space,” said Kiran Kang, the director of mental health operations.

Ohio's Cincinnati Children's Hospital is now one of many across the country expanding mental health facilities.

The team says the hospital will one day house more than 130 beds for care.

It is designed to give kids the feel, that mental health help is no different than a visit to the doctors for anything else.

“We're seeing a lot of depression, anxiety, and a lot of loss and traumatic experiences, a lot of kids lost family members so they are dealing with the aftermath of that,” said Dr. Suzanne Sampang, the clinical medical director and doctor of child and adolescent psychiatry.

Upon completion, they do expect this to be the largest in-patient facility for children in the country, a need that has grown in these pandemic times.

What is different now according to the team here is that children are needing intense mental health care at younger ages and for problems for which they are building units here were not previously common in kids.

Sex trafficking, severe childhood trauma, and suicidal thoughts are among them.

“If you have any concerns, reach out early and try to get help, the earlier the better,” said Dr. Sampang.

If you would like to find out more about ways to support expanding mental health services at Children’s Hospital or how to find resources, CLICK HERE.