Preparing for the Wave

In February 2021, the Kaiser Family Foundation reported that 4 in 10 US adults have reported symptoms of an anxiety or depressive disorder, up from 1 in 10 who reported these symptoms from January to June 2019.

Add these troubling statistics to the fact that the state of Utah had a significant existing need for comprehensive mental health care, and the January 2021 dedication of Huntsman Mental Health Institute (HMHI) took on added importance.

Utah is among a group of states that has the highest prevalence of mental health disorders in children and adolescents ages 6 to 17 (Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute). The state also has one of the highest prevalences of youth with untreated mental health needs.

“Mental health care is one of the leading challenges facing our state and nation, but unfortunately, support for research and care has lagged compared to many other areas of human health,” said Mark H. Rapaport, MD, the CEO of HMHI and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine. “The launching of Huntsman Mental Health Institute, and the extraordinary gift that made it possible, could not have occurred at a more pivotal time.”

HMHI was established in November 2019, when the university announced a $150 million commitment from the Huntsman Foundation. The initial focus areas of HMHI include:

• Research that expands expertise in translational approaches to better inform brain health, interdisciplinary collaboration to enhance rapid discovery of underlying causes of mood disorders, suicide, anxiety, and addiction, and developing state-of-the-art diagnostic technology.

• Training that increases access to care for mental health and substance use disorders by growing the workforce in the state of Utah, and which enhances specialization in women’s health, rural and underserved populations, global health, school-based mental health, and neuropsychiatry.

• Clinical services that grow mental health integration programs with primary care providers, expand the SafeUT Crisis Chat and Tip Line, and expand access to child and teen, young adult, and maternal health programs.

• Community outreach that works to counter discrimination against those with mental health challenges, advocates for mental health policy and expanded care in Utah, and furthers partnerships with community-based organizations.

“Thanks to the incredible generosity of the Huntsman Foundation, the University of Utah is positioned to become a global leader in mental health training, treatment, and care,” said Michael Good, CEO of University of Utah Health, Senior Vice President of Health Sciences, and Dean of the Spencer Fox Eccles School of Medicine. “Huntsman Mental Health Institute will dramatically transform how mental health care is perceived, delivered, and studied.”

During the 14 months between the gift announcement and the dedication, HMHI built capacity to advance clinical services, research, training, and community outreach related to mental health.

Among the steps HMHI took was hiring Rapaport as its first director. He came to the U from Emory University, where he co-founded the Emory Brain Center. Before Emory, he was professor of psychiatry at both Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles and the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

“I’m excited about the opportunity afforded to me by the University of Utah and the Huntsman family,” Rapaport said. “I see HMHI as a nexus that will bring the campus together, from undergraduate and graduate programs to the health sciences and medical school. We can create a one-of-a-kind model that will help break down the stigma of mental illness.”

There in a Crisis

In May 2021, University of Utah Health and Huntsman Mental Health Institute broke ground on a Mental Health Crisis Care Center on the future site of the HMHI Campus of Hope. The new 24/7 facility will welcome people experiencing a mental health crisis and provide immediate, compassionate care at no cost to individuals.

The Mental Health Crisis Care Center will be designed to provide comprehensive crisis care functions.

• The compassionate evaluation of patients and families in psychiatric distress

• The capacity to intensively treat and stabilize 30 patients at a time in its 23-hour stabilization center

• A 24-bed inpatient facility where each patient will have an individual room

• Personalized case management and individualized recovery plans for all patients receiving any level of care in the facility

The Mental Health Crisis Care Center will be located at 3300 South and 1000 West in South Salt Lake. The center is proposed to open in 2024. 

• Jerilyn Stowe