New York City Opens Free Mental Safe Houses; Voluntary Admission Practiced

A new program in New York City has built free safe houses for people suffering from mental health issues and are seeking assistance. According to CNN, Community Access runs the program named Parachute NYC, which is federally funded. 

Parachute NYC began in 2013 after the U.S. Department of Health and Human services awarded funding for the project, amounting to $18 million, to NYC's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, reports WMUR 9.

Thanks to the obtained funds, Parachute NYC was able to build several respite centers in the city, where staff members who have conquered their own bouts of mental illnesses offer their services to anyone seeking it.  

The staff at Parachute NYC's facilities make these respite centers different, explains CNN. According to Steve Coe, CEO of Community Access, "Most have been taken by the police or EMS in an ambulance to a hospital. So the 'lived experience' we talk about is more than just going to counseling a few times." 

"We made an effort to hire staff who 'have been there' and understand what It's like being a client," adds deputy CEO of Community Access, Alysia Pascaris. 

The centers are located in four boroughs in NYC. The facilities reportedly have "apartment-style common rooms and bedrooms." People can voluntarily enter any of the facilities at any time.  

Guests are allowed to stay at the center for up to 10 nights, if they so desire. Freshly cooked meals are made available in these facilities.

Coe claims that the centers are a "soft landing," community-based alternative to emergency hospitalization.  

Speaking with CNN, Coe says, "There are a lot of people stuck in hospitals who really don't need to be there. Our centers give them temporary relief from whatever they may be going through." 

Additionally, Coe explains that other mental health centers in the country set up clinical intervention and use "medication heavily to achieve stabilization."  

While at the Parachute NYC centers, staff members assess the levels of need each guests requires and recommend medical attention if needed. However, no actual medical services are being offered on site. 

According to WMUR 9, peer programs, such as the one created by Parachute NYC, have been trending around the country since many psychiatric hospitals have been closed down, partly due to lack of funds.  

Peer programs "potentially reduce costs and provide community-based, trauma-informed, person-centered support," says Laysha Ostrow, a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California in San Francisco. Nevertheless, Ostrow insists that more research on the effectiveness of these programs need to be conducted.