Beyond the Emergency Department: Behavioral Health Urgent Care as a Child and Adolescent Mental Health Crisis Care...

Pediatric mental health-related emergency department (ED) visits have increased, though EDs are often ill-equipped to deliver timely, developmentally appropriate care, leading to repeated utilization. In response, Northwell Health launched a pediatric Behavioral Health Urgent Care (BHUC) in 2017 as an intermediate level of care providing same-day assessment, crisis intervention, care coordination, and short-term bridging services for youth not requiring ED care. Evaluation showed effective ED diversion, improved follow-up and care coordination, and high parent satisfaction, supporting BHUCs as a model to reduce preventable ED use and improve access to crisis-focused mental health care.