Dozens attend public meeting on proposed behavioral health center in Tecumseh

TECUMSEH — About 100 people from around Lenawee County and the surrounding areas gathered at the former ProMedica Herrick Hospital on Tuesday, July 18, to ask questions about a proposed behavioral health center for the site.

500 E. Pottawatamie St. LLC has signed a purchase agreement with ProMedica and is expected to take ownership of the building at the same address. Behavioral Health Consulting Partners of North America, which is affiliated with the LLC, would run the facility. 

BHCPNA Principal Kenneth Weber and Dr. Raymond Pomm, who would be the center’s medical director, were on hand Tuesday, along with BHCPNA’s legal counsel.

Weber has been a consultant in the behavioral health industry for more than a decade, leading startups and turnarounds, and has more than 25 years of management experience.

Pomm is an addiction specialist board certified in psychiatry, neurology and addiction psychiatry with 40 years of experience. He's also an associate professor in psychiatry at the University of Florida College of Medicine at Jacksonville.

In the crowd asking questions were nurses in the behavioral health industry, representatives from local behavioral health organizations, residents, substance use disorder peers and people seeking help for family and friends.

BHCPNA is currently in the process of completing title work, site planning, addressing facility concerns, getting quotes from contractors, working with insurers, and licensing.

One of the challenges facing the organization is building a staff of mental health and SUD professionals in an area where medical staff are hard to attract and retain.

BHCPNA has engaged with the University of Michigan Medical School to build a partnership that would allow the proposed facility to be a training site for fellowships in medicine and psychiatry, and is seeking other opportunities to build a staff of qualified behavioral health professionals.

In addition, Pomm said, the center would act as an education outreach center, forming partnerships with local entities such as law enforcement, schools, other behavioral health centers and professionals, peer recovery groups, hospitals and other overlapping organizations.

BHCPNA seeks to let those entities take the lead, letting BHCPNA know their needs. It would then provide education and services to meet those needs. 

Weber said the proposed facility would create 175 permanent maintenance, janitorial, recreational, medical and behavioral health jobs and 85 temporary construction jobs.    

Other BHCPNA projects include a behavioral health center underway in Falmouth, Massachusetts, and one in Duval County, Florida. 

In addition to Lenawee County, the proposed facility’s coverage map includes Grand Rapids, Lansing, Flint, Detroit, Toledo, Ann Arbor, Cleveland, Akron, Columbus, Dayton, Fort Wayne, South Bend and cities in Ontario, Canada.

The need for mental health, SUD, and co-occurring disorder treatment has grown across the country and is especially acute in Michigan, Pomm said.

The proposed center would launch with inpatient treatment for adolescents with mental health, SUD and co-occurring disorders and outpatient services for adults in these areas. Eventually, it would provide the full continuum of care for all ages.

The proposed center would accept private insurance and Medicaid, as well as provide scholarships.

Residents did express concerns about security. While the proposed center wouldn't be a lockdown facility, it would have secure doors and windows.

BHCPNA representatives said the proposed facility would only take voluntary admissions and, in the case a patient becomes a threat to themselves or others, they would be involuntarily admitted to an outside entity and transportation by ambulance or law enforcement would be provided.

For those not deemed a threat, an aftercare plan would be developed and transportation by a family member, law enforcement or another trusted source would be provided. The goal is to treat individuals so they're no longer a risk to themselves, which is usually the greatest factor, or others, Pomm said.

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BHCPNA also has software that monitors where patients are at all times, and where nurses enter information on their current state of mind.

Pomm said he works with the families of patients during visits to assure the whole family unit is being treated.

BHCPNA plans to hold additional public meetings prior to opening. It hopes to begin work on the facility by year end and open in the first quarter of 2024. 

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Dozens attend public meeting on proposed behavioral health center in Tecumseh