Excelsior Springs Hospital's Behavioral Health Clinic Fully Staffed

Excelsior Springs Hospital's Behavioral Health Department — *New staff members of the Behavioral Health Department stand together for a picture after the December 1st SAFE Meeting. Photo Courtney Cole*

This story originally ran in the Excelsior Springs Hospital’s December 2022 Vision Newsletter

Dr. Roshan Dasari, MD, MPH, has hit the ground running after being hired just three months ago. His task has been to build a Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Department within the Excelsior Springs Hospital. In that short time, he has established relationships with Primary Care physicians to work alongside the Behavioral Health Department, in order to provide a more efficient overall health care for patients. On Thursday, December 1, 2022, at the Excelsior Springs SAFE (Substance Abuse Free Environments) meeting, Dr. Dasari introduced all seven of the hospital’s new behavioral health professionals.

Still calling it a “work in progress,” Dr. Dasari explained the importance of bridging the gap between medical and mental health. Instead of treating them separately, the idea is to bring them together to treat the whole person. This holistic approach means moving away from the silos that currently exist and allows physicians to work together to treat both medical and mental health. Dr. Dasari’s research shows that five out of ten patients receive treatment for depression, with 79% being diagnosed through their Primary Care Clinics. Working in tandem with a patient’s primary care physician provides valuable information to Dr. Dasari and his team of mental health professionals. Working together, the shared information provides a more comprehensive and holistic approach for their patients.

This new clinic is being put in place after local data was shared and professionals could see the community’s need for local treatment, but no local resources to help. It was shared that suicide is the 11th leading cause of death in Missouri and that US suicide rates show that one person dies from suicide every 14 minutes.

In December of 2021, the US Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued a youth mental health crisis. It reads: “Mental health challenges in children, adolescents, and young adults are real and widespread. Even before the pandemic, an alarming number of young people struggled with feelings of helplessness, depression, and thoughts of suicide — and rates have increased over the past decade”.

Like national trends, Excelsior Springs’ youth is no different and without local resources for mental health treatment, many students fall between the gap, possibly receiving no treatment at all. Using this information, Hospital CEO Kristen DeHart and SAFE Director Julia Mees applied for funding to establish a Behavioral Health Clinic to work alongside Primary Care to provide mental health services to any Excelsior Springs student in need of support. From this request, the hospital was awarded a $350,000 grant from the Clay County Children’s Services fund. Now, within just three months time, the clinic is staffed and will launch by the end of this year.