ALAMEDA, Calif., Feb. 25 /PRNewswire/ -- Crossroads Behavioral Healthcare (Crossroads) and Telecare Corporation of Alameda, California, have completed an agreement for Telecare to provide mental health, developmental disabilities and substance abuse services to the residents of Iredell, Surry, and Yadkin Counties starting March 1, 2005.
Under the agreement, Telecare assumes operations of four former Crossroads service centers located in Mount Airy, Mooresville, Statesville and Yadkinville. A new center serving the Elkin area is scheduled to open on or about March 7 at 119-121 West Main St. Telecare will also operate two Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) teams and intensive adolescent/children’s wraparound services for the three-county area. With a population in excess of 250,000 persons, the service area stretches from the Virginia border south to just north of Charlotte. Once fully operational, approximately 130 staff will have been transitioned from Crossroads employment to Telecare employment.
“Working with Telecare staff the past year to plan for assumption of responsibilities, we have been impressed by their professionalism, experience, and dedication to recovery,” said David Swann, CEO of Crossroads Behavioral Healthcare. “Telecare’s management team has gained our trust and we are confident that our shared values will result in consumers experiencing a seamless transition to obtaining state-of-the-art community-based treatment from Telecare.”
Swann also reassured consumers, their families, and other providers that services will continue to be provided in the “same spaces by the same faces.”
Under contract with Crossroads, Telecare will provide comprehensive clinical services for adults with serious mental illness and addictive disorders, persons with mental retardation and behavioral disorders, including those involved with criminal court services; and children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances. Approximately 7,500 persons will be served annually by these programs, which are funded by a combination of private insurance, and local, state and federal sources, including Medicaid and Medicare.
According to Crossroads, Telecare was selected to provide services following a nationwide search for providers experienced in working with state and public agencies in organizing and delivering community-based models of recovery for those with serious mental illness.
“We look forward to a strategic partnership with Crossroads. We will be working closely with our new staff, other service providers, consumers, families and local behavioral health advocates as we implement best practice models and continue delivering excellent services and supports to persons with behavioral health needs in this area,” said David S. Bathory, PsyD., Telecare’s regional administrator, based in Elkin. “We are honored to have been selected to serve the behavioral health needs of these communities and we are excited about collaborating with the many dedicated individuals who have been providing these vital services through the years.”
Reporting to Bathory is Terry Cook, administrator for the Elkin and Yadkinville centers; David Crosby, Mooresville and Statesville administrator; and Ron Baczurik, Mt. Airy administrator. Services at each center include assessments; individual, group and family psychotherapy; psychiatric evaluations; medication monitoring; case management; and intensive community services. Statesville and Mt. Airy also provide an intensive outpatient substance abuse program. Two specialized programs -- one for adults and one for children -- are available for individuals with more intensive needs: the Iredell, Surry, Yadkin Telecare Children’s Intensive Services, or ISYTICS, and the assertive community treatment program for adults, ISYACT. Program teams are based at the Mt. Airy and Statesville centers.
As a result of North Carolina’s mental health reform initiative in 2001 and development of the “State Plan 2002: A Blueprint for Change,” Crossroads and other mental health Area Programs became local management entities -- or LMEs -- with responsibility for managing resources and services rather than being direct service providers. Operating under the jurisdiction of Iredell, Surry and Yadkin Counties and the North Carolina Department of Health & Human Services, Crossroads builds, maintains, and monitors the quality of a network of community service providers, assuring that citizens receive quality care.
About Telecare
To make referrals or get additional information, individuals can contact the 24-hour Crossroads Access Line at 888-235-HOPE, or individual centers: Yadkinville, 336-679-8805; Mooresville, 704-660-1020; Statesville, 704-872-8916; Mt. Airy, 336-719-3232; Elkin, to be announced.
Founded in 1965, Telecare Corporation is a family and employee-owned provider of behavioral health to local, county and state governments. With over 2,000 employees and 60 programs in four states, including North Carolina, Telecare provides a full range of services to individuals with serious mental illness. Telecare has received the highest commendation available from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF). For more information about Telecare or programs in North Carolina, visit http://www.telecarecorp.com/.
About Crossroads
Crossroads Behavioral Healthcare became a Local Managing Entity (LME) with responsibility for managing behavioral health services in Iredell, Surry and Yadkin Counties in 2002. Previously, Crossroads had been a primary provider organization for 33 years. Crossroads’ area office remains at 200 Business Park Drive in Elkin, NC. For more information about Crossroads, visit http://www.crossroadsbhc.org/
Crossroads Behavioral Healthcare
CONTACT: David Bathory of Telecare Mental Health Services of NorthCarolina, Inc., +1-336-466-1692; or David R. Swann of Crossroads BehavioralHealthcare, +1-336-835-1001, ext. 204
Web site: http://www.telecarecorp.com/
Web site: http://www.crossroadsbhc.org/