Pathways opens two new facilities

Mar. 19—ASHLAND — Pathways is contributing to the increase in mental health resources as it opened two new facilities in northeastern Kentucky.

A ribbon-cutting celebration hosted by the Northeast Kentucky Chamber of Commerce marked the grand opening of two new facilities received a special visitor from Gov. Andy Beshear. He expressed the importance of strengthening mental health resources and said Pathways is doing just that.

"Health care is a basic human right with mental health being just as important as physical health, for far too long it's lagged behind either in basic services or emergency services," Beshear said to The Daily Independent. "What you see here is the true embodiment of investing to respond to a mental health crisis."

The Journey — at 6417 U.S. Route 60 in Summit — is marketed toward giving "residential treatment" to women, which is considered "transitional living," Jennifer J. Willis, chief executive officer of Pathways, said.

The facility will provide 11 additional beds.

"Other than their peer services and things there at the house they will actually go to outpatients for what's called intensive outpatient treatment, which is multiple hours a day in therapy," she said.

"It has been over a year in the works," she added. "We were so ready to get that facility open."

Willis said she had the chance Tuesday morning to give a tour of the place to the women who will be living in the facility.

"They were holding their babies," Willis said. "I heard one say, 'Mommy, this is where we are going to live.' Oh my gosh, it just broke my heart, it was so sweet."

With this particular facility, women will be able to keep their child with them through the recovery process, she said.

"You don't have to be pregnant or have a child but you can be pregnant or newly postpartum and keep your baby with you," Willis said. "The opportunity for them to recover and be able to keep their baby is a good incentive to keep them enthusiastic about their recovery; it's beautiful."

The Pathways location on Winchester Avenue in Ashland will serve as a residential crisis stabilization unit where a crisis hotline for patients undergoing mental distress will be operational.

"We will start with 9-8-8 calls coming in here and based on if the staff feel like they need a mobile crisis response, we will deploy the team, whether it be out in the community or in their home," Willis said.

"They can also stay in our 24-hour observation unit. By seven days, people are generally through their crisis and it helps them through that difficult time to transition into the place they need to be," she added.

Beshear told the crowd what they see is not just realization, but Ashland living up to the idea that mental health is just as important.

"Everything from the first call, it goes to a 9-8-8 counselor instead of 911 to have a trained professional at the first moment," he said.

"You are truly living out our faith and are values of that golden rule, that says we love our neighbor as ourselves and that parable of the good samaritan that says everyone is our neighbor," Beshear said. "You truly live out that teaching when we ensure that we are helping those suffering from addiction and a mental health crisis."

(606) 326-2657 — ajohnson@dailyindependent.com