A new national report found Virginia is facing “catastrophic” shortages in community mental health. Providers in Norfolk say many patients still struggle to know where to turn during a mental health crisis.
The report from mental health policy group Inseparable found Virginians go out of network for mental health care six and a half times more often than for physical health care, often leading to higher out-of-pocket costs. It also found Virginia meets only 22% of its psychiatrist workforce needs.
Caitlin Hochul, senior vice president of policymaker relations at Inseparable, said Virginia’s shortage of community mental health providers means patients may wait months to access care and conditions could worsen before treatment becomes available.
The mental health shortage goes beyond the number of clinicians available, according to local providers. Many residents face difficulties navigating a fragmented system of hospitals, crisis lines, private practices and community programs.
Johnny Hunter from Kempsville Center for Behavioral Health, a psychiatric facility in Norfolk, said many people still assume emergency rooms are the only option during a mental health crisis.
“The way I put it is by asking people ‘if you break your arm or leg, where do you go? I was admitted to go to the hospital,’” Hunter said. “And I said, ‘Well, what happens if you break your mind? And they go, ‘I don’t know… what?’”
Hunter said Kempsville operates a 24-hour psychiatric service for children and teens, but many families are unaware those kinds of services exist outside hospitals.
He said transportation can also become a barrier for patients participating in partial hospitalization programs that require daily visits.
Marcia Samuels is a psychologist at Community Psychological Resources, a private practice in Norfolk. She said people without relationships with primary care doctors or providers can struggle more to enter the system and find referrals for care.
She said in the private practice she works at, new patients seeking in-person therapy may wait weeks for openings because clinicians already have full caseloads.
Under Virginia’s Right Help, Right Now mental health access initiative, the Norfolk Community Service Board is building a broader crisis response system that includes the 988 suicide and crisis hotline, mobile crisis teams and stabilization programs.
Hank Crowford, assistant director for integrated community and medical services at Norfolk CSB, said the goal is to connect residents with care before situations escalate into emergencies.
“We’re also fleshing out, through the community of Norfolk and the state, different means besides hospitalization to help people, because not everybody who has a mental health crisis needs the hospital,” Crowford said.
He said the CSB serves around 6,000 residents annually and is preparing for growing demand as more people seek mental health services and become aware of available resources.
Kelly Edwards, a behavioral health worker in Chesapeake, said communities need more face-to-face conversations around mental health, especially for adults in assisted settings.
She said pamphlets alone are often not enough, and many people do not know how to handle when someone shows signs of crisis.
“Sometimes if you’re not in that field, you don’t know how to respond,” Edwards said.