New Allegheny Health Network behavioral health hub to open in Pittsburgh
May is Mental Health Awareness Month, and to commemorate it, Allegheny Health Network's Psychiatry and Behavioral Health Institute moved to a new space on Friday.
Warm colors and inviting artwork welcome you to the new institute. It's a fresh place not just for patients, but also longtime workers like chair Dr. Anthony Mannarino, and child psychiatrist Dr. Gary Swanson, who got a look at his office for the first time Friday morning.
"I have a phone. I have a computer. It looks like it works," Dr. Swanson said.
They, along with their colleagues and leadership, celebrated the move from Four Allegheny Center, where the institute was located for more than 30 years, to the third floor of the Federal North building on Pittsburgh's North Side on Friday with a ribbon-cutting event.
"This new space empowers us to deliver integrated, patient-centered care with both innovation and most of all compassion," said Alejandro Garcia Montijo, the institute's vice president.
It includes an upgraded Austin's Playroom for children donated by the Mario Lemieux Foundation, with more activities to keep them busy as they wait. It's a big change from the old facility, which was dark and deteriorating.
"The heating and the air conditioning were problematic over the last 10 years," Dr. Mannarino said. "It's a much brighter space. The lighting is better. The furniture is new."
Unlike their old home, where they were the only providers, here, they'll be next door to other health departments.
"All of those programs will allow us to collaborate with them and provide better integrated care," Dr. Mannarino said.
Now they're just waiting for their patients to arrive, knowing this new spot will make all the difference for them in the decades to come.
"When I think about the patients that we serve, highly vulnerable patients with anxiety, with depression, and other mental health disorders, they deserve a good space," Dr. Mannarino said.
The new space will officially open for patients on May 11.
