Mercy Health — Lorain Hospital Opens New Behavioral Health Access Center

Mercy Health - Lorain Hospital opened its new Behavioral Health Access Center (BAC) on Thursday, February 17. The BAC is located in the hospital’s Emergency Department and provides compassionate, specialized care to patients with mental health and addiction emergencies.

In 2019, Mercy Health – Lorain Hospital was awarded a $325,000 grant to refresh its existing BAC to provide improved facilities and services to behavioral health patients. The grant was administered by Lorain County Community College.

“The BAC is the first point of contact for patients who are experiencing a behavioral health emergency and need of mental health services. The improvements made to the BAC, including a new virtual skylight, enhance the therapeutic milieu of the facility, focusing on the structural design to create a comfortable environment for patients. The spacious 6-bed facility is supported by round-the-clock psychiatrist services and staffed by team members who are specifically trained in behavioral health assessment. This enables us to provide specialized, compassionate care to our patients. We want to make sure our patients feel safe, comforted and that they are not alone as they experience a mental health emergency,” said Mercy Health – Lorain Hospital Psychiatric Medical Director Balaji Saravanan, MD.

Mercy Health has long been committed to providing behavioral health services to the communities we serve. In Lorain, this commitment is evident through the expansion of Lorain Hospital’s inpatient behavioral health unit, growth of outpatient services including Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) and Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT), and hiring additional dedicated psychiatrists and psychologists to our teams.