Providence’s children inpatient psychiatric center to close this week; Sacred Heart nurses protest

Providence Health Care is closing its Psychiatric Center for Children and Adolescents this week.

The inpatient psychiatric care unit closes on Saturday after serving Spokane children experiencing mental health crises since 1984. The facility treated kids ages 12 to 17 with depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, acute psychosis or other diagnoses that require inpatient hospitalization. The unit is licensed for 24 beds, but capacity dropped to eight in recent years.

According to Providence, closure of the facility came down to a nationwide shortage of inpatient mental health professionals – specifically child psychiatrists – specializing in caring for children.

“Without providers to staff the unit, it could not be sustained in our hospital,” Providence said in a statement.

The union representing Sacred Heart nurses claims adolescents will not be able to find the services they need in Spokane. During a protest Thursday evening, the Washington State Nurses Association chanted “Shame on you, Providence” to the hospital system.

“Our behavioral health system is not accessible. It’s not there for the patients when they need it, and any time we’re closing doors, it really is a travesty for the community,” WSNA President Justin Gill said at the rally.

Providence maintains there is adequate mental health support for Spokane teenagers in crisis, such as that found at Inland Northwest Behavioral Health.

But INBH does not provide care for children with “more complicated diagnoses or acute-care needs,” according to the union.

Inland Northwest Behavioral Health spokesperson Jamie Valdez said their adolescent unit does treat patients’ mental health at a high level of care, but it does not have the capacity to treat patients who also have physical health issues .

“We do take care of patients with acute mental health needs. But if they have medical complexities, we don’t have that capacity here,” she said.

Valdez added the INBH is prepared for a new influx of patients and has capacity to care for them from ages 12 through 17.

Former patient Atlas Gould said Providence’s adolescent psychiatric center saved her life last year after she was admitted.

“Everyone was so amazing. I felt so taken care of. It’s why I was able to get back into the world,” she said.

Gould was “heartbroken” when she learned of the unit’s closure and still worries where she would go if her mental health backslides.

Nurses and patients such as Gould disagree with Providence’s claim that Inland Northwest Behavioral Health can offer similar care.

“Providence is taking away a fundamental right to health care. It’s going to tear us kids up. I hope they know what they are doing,” the teenager said.

WSNA nurses say Providence has not done enough to ensure Spokane families can easily and effectively care for their children experiencing an acute mental health crisis.

Central to the union’s claim is that children in need of acute behavioral health care may need to travel outside of Spokane to receive it – something Providence disputes.

“This closure will leave Eastern Washington without the high-level inpatient care for this vulnerable population, forcing families to be taken out of their communities and driven to Tacoma or Seattle to receive treatment,” WSNA labor council chairperson Edna Cortez said at the rally.

This is false, Providence said – pointing to the 25-bed adolescent unit operated by Inland Northwest Behavioral Health.

“The union’s claim stating that young patients will need to travel outside of Spokane for mental health care is false. High-level inpatient care for young people in crisis continues to be available right here in Spokane,” Providence said in a statement.

A child experiencing a mental health crisis can also be treated for stabilization at the nearest emergency room, including at Sacred Heart.

“It is important for our community to know that local care is available,” Providence said.

According to the union statement, these are not “reasonable alternative options” for these adolescent patients.

“Providence wants the community to believe that closure of their adolescent inpatient psychiatric unit will not negatively impact the community and patients they once served. This is simply not true,” WSNA spokesperson Ruth Schubert said in a statement.

Meanwhile, INBH drew considerable ire from nurse union protestors, who are skeptical of its for-profit business model. Providence operates as a nonprofit.

“The idea of replacing this nonprofit unit with referring people to a for-profit, free-standing psychiatric facility is just wrong, and it’s not going to work for many people who need the kind of care that’s been provided here,” WSNA Executive Director David Keepnews said.

Sacred Heart, like other hospitals, has faced much wider financial challenges since the COVID-19 pandemic from staff shortages, supply chain issues, inflation and other costs. The hospital had $175.5 million in operating losses in 2023, according to Department of Health data.