Ogdensburg offers new options for mental health care

OGDENSBURG, New York (WWNY) – There are new mental health care options for patients in Ogdensburg: a Citizen Advocates urgent care center on Park Street and a new children’s unit at Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center.

The urgent care center opens for business Tuesday.

“We’re open 24/7 because we are similar to a primary care urgent care in that we want to be easily accessible to everyone in the community,” said Kati Jock, Citizen Advocates’ chief operations officer.

The center will treat people for mental health issues, and substance abuse and help them return to health with treatment and recovery plans. When called for, patients can be sent to the emergency room or referred to acute care in hospitals.

“I think it’s really about being here at the right time, for the right care, in the right place,” said Jock.

The center is in a rehabilitated building on Park Street. It cost $2.4 million to convert to an urgent care center. About 25 people are employed there.

The urgent care center isn’t the only expansion of mental health services in St. Lawrence County. Just a mile away, at Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center, they’re opening a new behavioral health unit for children.

It offers acute inpatient mental health care for up to 12 children at a time. Until now, children often had to be sent to hospitals many hours away for that type of care.

“This has been a much-needed service for the last several years. We have been seeing a large amount of children coming into our emergency room with psychiatric complaints,” said Sarah Gordinier, Claxton-Hepburn children’s behavioral health unit director.

Claxton-Hepburn has the region’s only mental health emergency department. It also operates a 28-bed adult acute care mental health unit.

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