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Construction
of new psychiatric facility to
get underway
(December
2007 Issue)
By Phyllis Hanlon
Since February 2003 when then-Governor Mitt Romney proposed closing
Worcester State Hospital, the fate of a new state psychiatric facility
has engendered a firestorm of discussion. Pleas to keep that site
and Westborough State Hospital open clashed with state officials
who sought closure of the facilities. In March 2003, the Department
of Mental Health (DMH) settled the issue. The Department investigated
the issue and released a 31-page report that suggested reducing
the total number of adult inpatient beds in the state from 900 to
740 and constructing a new hospital to replace both the current
facilities in Westborough and Worcester State.
Five years after the initial proposition, the Commonwealth hopes
to launch the first phase in the construction of a new state psychiatric
facility.
Once the decision to construct a new, state-of-the-art building
with an environment more conducive to patient care and staff morale
was made, a location had to be determined. After much debate, several
public hearings and a straw poll, the Department of Mental Health
Inpatient Facility Feasibility Commission decided to build the new
facility on the campus of the current Worcester State Hospital.
According to Alison Goodwin, communications manager for the Executive
Office of Health and Human Services, "DMH is on schedule to construct
a new state psychiatric hospital in Central Massachusetts and consolidate
continuing care inpatient services provided at Worcester State Hospital
and Westborough State Hospital into the new facility." She adds
that the two existing hospitals will eventually be closed.
Although DMH initially suggested an adult inpatient bed capacity
at 740, the anticipated number is slightly less than half that estimate.
"The new facility will have a 320-bed capacity: 260 adult beds and
60 adolescent beds," Goodwin says.
Efforts to secure funding for the new construction have also dragged
on for years. However, Goodwin indicates that the fiscal aspect
of the project has finally earned the green light. "The Capitol
Bond Bill was passed in April 2007, which the governor signed; the
funds were included in the bill," she says, adding that projected
costs of the new facility remain at $278 million.
According to Goodwin, demolition on the site for the project is
scheduled to begin the first part of January 2008.
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