Inpatient Services

Within the inpatient service are several special services. All of these services require that the patient meet the general criteria for hospitalization at Manhattan Psychiatric Center (MPC). These services are:

• Hispanic Ward:
  For patients who speak only Spanish and/or whose cultural identity is primarily Hispanic. Services include treatment services provided in Spanish, culture specific events, and liaison with community based culturally appropriate resources.
• Service for the Treatment and Abatement of Interpersonal Risk (STAIR) Unit:
  For patients with a history of interpersonal violence, but are psychiatrically stable and able to participate in a cognitive/ behavioral education program. This unit provides a very structured environment and an enriched cognitive approach so as to assist patients in anger management, reasoned thinking and adaptive behavior without risk to themselves or the broader community.
• Polydipsia Cluster:
  For patients with the psychiatric condition of hyponatremia. This program provides the structured environment to control patients' water drinking and successfully monitor their sodium levels, preventing medical emergencies and to restore patients’ control over their water drinking behaviors.
• Diabetic Cluster:
  For patients who have an Axis III diagnosis of Diabetes, in addition to a psychiatric diagnosis. The focus is to provide intensive treatment and education regarding Diabetes, while addressing the psychiatric issues that originally brought the patient to the hospital. Patients are educated on the skills necessary to manage their diabetic condition, including special diet and exercise and knowledge about possible complications from diabetes. Patients learn about the importance of compliance with all medical follow up, especially podiatry and optometry, in order to avoid deterioration of their physical health. Patients also learn how to check glucose levels independently and when applicable, they are trained how to provide insulin coverage to themselves.

  The program relies heavily on health teaching provided by nurses and medical doctors, but all the clients also attend a full schedule of Treatment Mall programming, where they can learn the skills necessary to be reintegrated in the community and manage their psychiatric illness.

• Research Cluster:
  For patients who need an intensive review of their non-responsiveness to basic approaches at psychiatric stability. This ward provides innovative approaches to psychopharmacology and learning techniques. This is also a clinical research unit, in affiliation with the Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, conducting clinical studies in four major areas of treatment of serious mental diseases:
  1. New antipsychotic compounds for chronic schizophrenia;
  2. Treatment refractory schizophrenia;
  3. Cognitive enhancement treatments; and
  4. Characterization and treatment of metabolic abnormalities associated with atypical antipsychotics.
• Treatment Malls at Manhattan Psychiatric Center

  Mission:
  The mission of the Treatment Mall is to provide active treatment programming for all of our inpatients. Each patient has the opportunity to choose and participate in an active program directed towards strengthening functional skill areas that are fundamental to successful adaptation to daily living in a variety of settings. Each group helps patients discover strengths and interests which will serve to initiate or support the recovery process.

  Overview of the mall:
  The Treatment malls are designed to provide active treatment programming which is consistent and replicable, in an environment clearly differentiated for that purpose. All patients from a given residential ward attend programs at the same time. Programs are provided on a uniform schedule. All professional and paraprofessional staff providing programming are together at the same place, at the same time, providing mutual collegial support and oversight. The atmosphere is more school-like and progress oriented than the often custodial-type programs given on the home wards in the past.

  Schedules of all mall groups are prominently posted, and patients have individualized program cards which they use independently to direct them to the groups they will attend. Group leaders have corresponding sign-in sheets for patients to record their attendance. Schedules, program cards, and group rosters are maintained in a centralized data base on the Mall, and are available to all staff through a click of the computer.

  The Treatment Malls also implement a major Wellness program. This is a manualized psychoeducational program utilizing multiple teaching modules, including education about the disease, the medication, health and wellness. It emphasizes Seriously and Persistently Mentally Ill (SPMI) as a disease of multiple comorbidities both psychiatric and medical. There is a comprehensive focus on preventing relapse, enhancing compliance, addressing stigma, collaboration.

• MPC’s Computerized Cognitive Remediation Program- Thinking for Living:
  The Cognitive Remediation Program (Thinking for Living) at Manhattan Psychiatric Center, is offered as a routine treatment to both our inpatient and outpatients. Our Cognitive Remediation Program is designed to improve specific areas of cognition such as: executive functioning, memory, attention, and psychomotor speed. Our patients participate in several lab sessions per week where they receive neurocognitive training utilizing a software program called Cogpack. They also participate in a discussion group where they are taught how to implement such “thinking skills” into everyday life experiences. Patients are administered pre and post neurocognitive assessments in order to evaluate their performance. Overall, our patients find these groups both stimulating and challenging, and are very excited to be a part of such a cutting-edge intervention.

  Additional outcome results can be found on our publication: Psychiatric Services 59:241–247, 2008 "A Randomized Controlled Trial of Cognitive Remediation Among Inpatients With Persistent Mental Illness." Jean-Pierre Lindenmayer, Medical Doctor (M.D.) Susan Regina McGurk, Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) Kim T. Mueser, Ph.D. Anzalee Khan, Master of Science (M.S.) Deborah Wance, Master of Arts (M.A.) Lisa Hoffman, Ph.D. Rosemarie Wolfe, M.S. Haiyi Xie, Ph.D.

Comments or questions about the information on this page can be directed to the Manhattan Psychiatric Center.