Behavioral health urgent care hopes to fill critical need in Robeson County
By Heidi Perez-Moreno
Border Belt Independent
James Granger says primary care doctors shouldn’t just focus on patients’ physical health. Their mental well-being is just as important.
“Being able to do both, to understand both aspects, makes sense to us in being able to send that person on their journey,” said Granger, the chief operating officer for Southeastern Integrated Care. “It makes sense for the community here and rural areas that are underserved.”
Southeastern Integrated Care, which takes a holistic approach to medicine, will operate a 24-hour behavioral health urgent care center for adults and children in Robeson County. Trillium Health Resources, which manages mental health services in much of eastern North Carolina, is providing $2 million for the center, which is expected to open by the end of the year.
The goal of behavioral health urgent care centers is to keep people struggling with mental health issues—from panic attacks to drug misuse—out of hospitals’ emergency rooms that often have long wait times and lack the resources to provide a calming environment.
North Carolina has increasingly looked to behavioral health urgent care centers as a way to help people in immediate need. The state Department of Health and Human Services said in April 2024 it planned to invest about $15 million for nine centers in Alamance, Buncombe, Caldwell, Haywood, Onslow, Pitt, Rockingham, Rowan and Vance counties. The move would increase the state’s behavioral health urgent care services by nearly 50%, DHHS said.
The state health department and Trillium announced in January their plans to award more than $13 million to providers to open behavioral health urgent care centers and community crisis centers in Lenoir, New Hanover and Pitt counties.
A behavioral health urgent care respite facility for children opened in the Columbus County town of Chadbourn in June. The center can accommodate up to six young people with mental health issues for short-term stays to relieve families and caregivers.
In Robeson County, adults reported having poor mental health on 5.7 of the previous 30 days, according to the latest County Health Rankings from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute. That was higher than the statewide figure of 4.9 days, according to the rankings, which used data from 2022.
Robeson County residents said obesity, mental health and substance misuse were the top health issues that need to be addressed, according to the county’s 2023 Community Health Needs Assessment.
In 2023, 878 people in Robeson County sought help for depression at the emergency room, according to the state’s Mental Health Dashboard. More than 600 sought help for depression, and about 850 sought help for suicidal thoughts.
Granger said emergency rooms are crucial for treating life-threatening injuries or illness. But building relationships is key for behavioral health.
“That traditional emergency room model of care is not designed to adequately serve this vulnerable population,” he said.
Lori Dove, the senior vice president and chief operating officer at UNC Health Southeastern, Robeson County’s only hospital, said in a statement that a continued increase in patients seeking mental health care in the emergency room is an ongoing concern.
“The rise in visits underscores the need for more accessible mental health care options, including outpatient services and community support systems,” Dove said. “Through the implementation of integrated care models, where mental health professionals are part of the emergency care team, outcomes can be improved for all patients.”
Anthony Grimaldi, chief innovation officer at Southeastern Integrated Care, said in a statement that the new center “will provide the right place at the right time for the right client to receive psychiatric and substance use disorder stabilization services in a milieu environment that’s conducive to safety, wellness and recovery.”
Medical providers at the Pembroke office of Southeastern Integrated Care are already equipped to treat patients’ physical and mental health. The office provides individual, family and group therapy, along with medication management and community support teams. Many of the services are designed for patients with substance use disorders.
Trillium approached Southeastern Integrated Care about six months ago about operating a behavioral health urgent center, Granger said.
The facility will be at 105 Farmbrooke Drive in Lumberton, which currently houses the office’s Advanced Medical Home program. About 3,000 square feet of the building will be dedicated to the behavioral health unit, which can serve up to 12 patients a day, Grimaldi said.
Uninsured people will not be turned away if they can’t afford to pay, Grimaldi said, and the center will accept patients who have Medicaid. Along with serving patients experiencing mental health crises, the center will care for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities and traumatic brain injuries.
Southeastern Integrated Care plans to hire 15 to 20 additional staff members skilled in urgent behavioral health care for adults and children.
NC Child, a nonprofit that advocates for children’s well-being, gave the state an F grade for mental health in its 2025 report card. Adolescents ages 12 to 17 who had a major depressive episode increased nearly 27% between 2018-19 and 2022-23, according to the report.
Nearly 42% of Robeson County residents are Native American, as the county is home to the Lumbee tribe and many Tuscarora people. Since 2019, Native Americans have visited emergency rooms across the country for mental health issues at a higher rate than other racial group except white people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“It makes sense for the community here, and especially in rural areas that are underserved,” Granger said. “I think it pushes for the community and overall health of its citizens.”
Sonya McGirt, a therapist in Lumberton, said expanding mental health services in Robeson County might encourage more people to seek counseling. It’s helpful when primary care doctors refer patients to mental health professionals.
“That’s a really common way people end up with a therapist: Someone or their doctor suggests it,” she said. “I’ve noticed that for a lot of people who either don’t trust therapy or don’t think to seek it out, they will sometimes have someone that ends up suggesting it. That’s why it’s helpful when doctors do it, because people should be seeing a doctor.”
Granger said the new center will add another option for people struggling with mental health issues.
“We’re just excited to see how the community responds to it,” he said.
The post Behavioral health urgent care hopes to fill critical need in Robeson County appeared first on North Carolina Health News.
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