Pilgrim Psychiatric Center

Pilgrim Psychiatric Center
998 Crooked Hill Road
West Brentwood, NY 11717–1087
Phone: (631) 761–3500
Fax: (631) 761–2600
E–Mail: Pilgrim Psychiatric Center

About Pilgrim Psychiatric Center

• History
• Self-Assessment Program
• Pilgrim Today
• Mission
• Vision
• Credo
• Active Treatment and Program Activities
• The Rehabilitation Center
• Museum
• Professional Departments
• Psychology Internship Program
• Family Support Services
• Specialty Services for Inpatients
• Community Services
• Specialty Services for Outpatients
• Residential Programs
• Public Notice

History

In 1927, New York Governor Alfred Smith, with public support, pressed the legislature to appropriate money to obtain a minimum of 10,000 beds needed to relieve overcrowding and treat the increasing numbers of people who would need treatment in a mental institution.

Such a big hospital had to be located out in the country where land was cheap. It had to be as nearly complete and self–sufficient as possible, generating its own electricity, pumping its own water and growing some of its food. One thousand acres in Brentwood was chosen for this to be another farm colony.

Pilgrim State Hospital was created by the Legislature in 1929 and named for Dr. Charles W. Pilgrim, Commissioner of Mental Health in the early 1900s. The hospital officially opened for the care and treatment of patients on 825 acres with 100 patients transferred from Central Islip State Hospital on October 1, 1931. Nine months later, 2,018 patients were hospitalized at Pilgrim. The census rose to its peak in 1954, with 13,875 patients.

Pilgrim was the largest facility of its kind in the world when it was built. The hospital community was independent in that it had its own water works, electric light plant, heating plant, sewage system, fire department, police department, courts, church, post office, cemetery, laundry, store, amusement hall, athletic fields, greenhouses, and farm.

Over time, as increasing numbers of patients were able to be discharged and greater support and services became available in the community, the need for such large facilities to treat the mentally ill was diminished. Following the trend, Kings Park Psychiatric Center and Central Islip Psychiatric Center were consolidated and relocated to the Pilgrim campus in the Fall of 1996. The following Fall, those facilities were merged into Pilgrim Psychiatric Center under one name. Today, Pilgrim reflects the history and best practices for care and treatment of all three facilities and has become a modern health care delivery system serving the mentally ill adults of Long Island.

Self-Assessment Program

Pilgrim Psychiatric Center cares about you. If you have been feeling sad, withdrawn, anxious, stressed, or out of control, we encourage you to take this completely anonymous mental health screening . In a matter of minutes, you will learn if how you're feeling, acting or behaving is a symptom of something more serious. You will also get access to treatment resources and referral information for follow up care.

Pilgrim Today

Pilgrim Psychiatric Center provides a continuum of inpatient and outpatient psychiatric, residential, and related services with approximately 380 inpatient beds and 4 outpatient treatment centers plus one ACT Team throughout Suffolk County . The campus includes several residential agencies on the grounds such as Central Nassau Guidance Center and Transitional Services, Charles K. Post, a residential treatment center operated by the New York State Office of Alcohol and Substance Abuse, and Phoenix House, a residential treatment center for those with substance abuse diagnosis. Development of the surrounding acreage has been planned for the near future. The campus is within easy access to parkways, public transportation, and local shopping.

Inpatient Services are located in three modern complexes and offer a wide variety of treatment options. The focus of treatment is rapid recovery with symptom reduction, access to programs which develop skills to manage psychiatric illness and better function in the community, and active discharge planning and support for individuals returning to community living. Treatment is provided by multi–disciplinary teams of professional and paraprofessional staff offered in individual and group format. On–ward treatment spaces reflect state–of–the art design and a therapeutic environment. Each ward includes private and semi–private bedroom areas and bathroom facilities, a living room, program room, activity area, and dining room. Off–ward program and recreational space are available within each building.

There are 15 inpatient wards including 3 admission wards, 3 geriatric wards (1 admission), and 9 Psychiatric Rehabilitation wards which include 2 behavioral treatment wards.

Pilgrim Psychiatric Center is fully accredited by the Joint Commission from December 3, 2010 through October 1, 2013.

Regular Visiting Hours

Monday to Friday: 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Weekends and Holidays: 10 a.m. to noon, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Certain restrictions apply with regard to items brought when visiting patients. Visitors should call the ward personnel prior to the visit for further information on this policy.

Intensive Treatment Unit Visiting Hours

Monday, Wednesday, Friday: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Tuesday, Thursday: 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Saturday, Sunday: 1 p.m. to 3 p.m.
Sunday and Holidays: 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.

Quality Report

Pilgrim is in full compliance with all applicable Behavioral Healthcare and Hospital Standards effective October, 2010.
For further information regarding the Quality Report by the Joint Commission, the public may:

• Visit the Joint Commission's Quality Check web site at www.qualitycheck.org
• Enter Pilgrim Psychiatric Center in the Search by Organization tab
• Click on the Joint Commission's Gold Seal of Approval Accreditation Quality Report on the View Accreditation/Certification link.
  Quality Reports are only available for organizations and programs that are accredited or certified by the Joint Commission.
• The results of the hospital's National Patient Safety Goal compliance may also be accessed on this web page.

Mission

We provide a comprehensive array of treatments and services that inspire people with unique mental health needs to experience hope, self determination and success in their lives.

Vision

We envision a mental health system that is driven by the goals and aspirations of the people we serve and provides a healing experience through exceptional collaborative treatment.

Credo

We believe:

• Every individual can lead a life with meaning and purpose.
• Every person is different, each shaped by unique life experiences. This enables us to better understand each other and the people we serve.
• Integrated and evidenced based mental health care helps individuals maximize resilience and achieve wellness.
• Interactions with individuals must be engaging, empowering, empathic and respectful.
• Professional and personal growth and full accountability for our actions are essential.
• When we work together as a team we can accomplish more than any one person can accomplish alone.

Active Treatment and Program Activities

In addition to on–ward treatment, Pilgrim offers a variety of off–ward locations for treatment, recreation, and programming. Alternate treatment environments are available to address the needs of our patients.

• Centralized Treatment Programs provide a variety of active treatment groups within a lesser restrictive environment and using additional available resources. The Treatment and Learning Center is a daily program offering classes in many areas of recovery including: medication education, social skills training, constructive use of leisure time, self-management skills, and related group sessions aimed at helping patients acquire the skills needed to become ready for discharge and function successfully in the community. A model apartment setting assists patients in community living preparation. Professional staff uses discussion groups, visual aids, and multi-media presentations to engage groups in the learning process.
• The MSTE ROOM (multi-sensory therapeutic environment) is a dedicated room that brings together a variety of multi-sensory equipment in one place to stimulate senses at the desired level. This area promotes feelings of well being and is utilized in treatment to promote choice, interaction, and relaxation through planned sensory stimulation. The patient is the one who sets the tone for each session as the staff facilitate the development of self-regulatory skills.
• Vocational Rehabilitation Programs include treatment, work adjustment, and job skill training in Computer Skills and Desk–top Publishing, Picture Framing and Matting, Furniture Repair and Refinishing, Electronics Repair, and Porter–Maintenance.
• The Nature Center consists of a greenhouse and surrounding gardens where patients have the opportunity to participate in horticulture therapy.
• E.P.I.C., a creative arts living museum, provides a large environment for therapeutic participation using varying art forms and media and allows for the ongoing display of completed artwork.
• The Barn hosts an Animal–Assisted Therapy and Activities program in which therapeutic treatment takes place using the interactions between patients and farm animals as the intervention.

Barn

Nature Center Greenhouse

The Rehabilitation Center

The Rehabilitation Center provides centralized space for many off–ward programs. This state–of–the art facility hosts a Swimming Pool, Bowling Alley, Gymnasium, Game Room, Fitness and Exercise Room, and Library and is available daily and evenings from Monday through Thursday. Classrooms for patient education, treatment groups, ceramic studio, kitchen areas, and meeting space are utilized here. A large Auditorium (capacity 289) is used for staff presentations, conferences, and patient activities. Recent movies are programmed and broadcast weekly for patients' viewing during evening and weekend hours and are also shown for direct viewing on a 22 foot movie theater style screen with surround sound.

Museum

The Long Island Psychiatric Museum is located on the Pilgrim campus and open to the public Monday through Friday from 8 am – 4 pm. Access to the Museum is made by appointment only. Please call (631)761-2118 or (631)761-3805 to make arrangements to visit.

The Museum offers a vast collection of memorabilia, artifacts, and photos representing the history of the three Long Island hospitals (Kings Park, Central Islip, Pilgrim) that were active at one time and have since been merged with Pilgrim Psychiatric Center.

Professional Departments Include:

• Psychiatry – pharmacological treatment and individual/group support and counseling provided by M.D. staff. A schedule of weekly Grand Rounds provides presentation by recognized leaders in the field of new and current information for our Psychiatric staff.
• Nursing – The provision of nursing services is an integral part of the overall facility organization and mission. Psychiatric nursing is a specialized area of nursing practice employing theories of human responses and the knowledge and skill of nursing intervention. We are committed to the holistic approach to patient care, viewing the individual with a multiplicity of interrelated and independent needs (physical, spiritual, psychological, and economic), and through the utilization of Nursing Process. The Professional Nurse assists the patient in addressing both psychiatric and physical self–care needs. Our conceptual framework embraces the collaborative efforts of both patient and nurse to meet self care deficits resulting from the patient's illness.
• Psychology – provides testing and evaluation, treatment planning, consultation, and individual and group counseling.
• Social Work – Certified and paraprofessional staff provide assessment, treatment planning, individual, group and family counseling, discharge planning and placement.
• Medicine – Routine physical assessment and medical care and referral for special services, care and consultation is provided, either in the facility's medical and Dental Clinics or in the local community. EMSS, the emergency medical service system, provides BLS/ACLS coverage to patients, staff, and visitors, if needed. PPC is a central training center for all downstate OMH facilities for ACLS training. AHA approved Advanced Cardiac Life Support courses are provided at least three times per year for doctors and nurses.
• Rehabilitation – Vocational Rehabilitation Programs provided by Rehabilitation Counselors and paraprofessional staff offer a variety of work–related opportunities to enable the individual to address treatment issues and work behaviors.
• Pharmacy – Medications are dispensed by our three pharmacies located in each patient building, using a computerized patient profiling system which includes a medication intervention program.
• Infection Control – provides surveillance, prevention, and control of nosocomial infections.
• Dietary and Nutrition Services – Registered Dieticians assess patients' nutritional needs in consultation with medical staff and are available for individual counseling and consultation. Patients are provided with three well–balanced meals and snacks daily.
• Therapeutic Recreation – Recreation Therapists and paraprofessional staff provide active treatment interventions and therapeutic leisure activities with patients. Community trips, holiday celebrations, and special activities are organized.
• Patient Education Services – Licensed teachers provide academic remediation via individual and classroom setting and GED preparation and exam.
• Volunteer Services – The facility is fortunate to have a host of Volunteers from the local community. Varying VFW posts and church groups make up the majority of those who visit regularly to provide activities for our patients and host our patients at their location. Individual volunteers work closely with staff and patients, as well.
• Pastoral Care – Addresses the spiritual and religious needs of the patients, their families, and the staff of Pilgrim Psychiatric Center. The Pastoral Care Department ensures that every patient in the facility has access to pastoral care and other spiritual services.

Psychology Internship Program
The Pilgrim Psychiatric Center's Internship Program is accredited* by:
American Psychological Association
Commission on Accreditation
750 First Street, N.E.
Washington, D.C. 20002–4242
(202) 336–5979

*on probation for the 2012–13 internship year. Pilgrim Psychiatric Center is confident that we will maintain our American Psychiatric Association (APA) accreditation following a site visit.

It is a one year (Sept.– Sept.) experience in an APA accredited program for Doctoral candidates in Psychology which follows an apprenticeship/practitioner model. This internship is designed to provide intensive, experiential training in the core skills of clinical psychology, as applied within a state psychiatric hospital, working with severely and persistently mentally ill patients in the public sector. The population we serve consists mainly of individuals with severe impairments, whose diagnoses include: schizophrenia; affective and anxiety disorders, substance abuse problems, and personality disorders. The intern will work side by side with seasoned clinicians, have a variety of assignments and opportunities to observe and treat serious and persistent mental illnesses, witness the effects of treatment, and assist the patient towards therapeutic re–integration into the community (i.e., discharge). For more information about the Pre–doctoral Psychology Internship Program, see the attached internship brochure. If you require additional assistance in viewing the document, you can write or call: Telephone: (631) 761–3764 Fax: (631) 761–3770.

Family Support Services:

At Pilgrim Psychiatric Center, the families of our patients are considered an integral part of the treatment process and family involvement is welcome.

The facility provides the following Family Support Services:

Family Advisory Board:

The Family Advisory Board is comprised of a group of relatives of past and present Pilgrim Psychiatric Center patients. The Family Advisory Board meets monthly with the Coordinator of Family Support Services to discuss issues related to overall patient care and treatment. Issues raised by the Family Advisory Board are communicated to the hospital administration. The Coordinator and the Family Advisory Board also plan annual events, such as the Family and Friends Open House, and the holiday gift distribution project.

Family and Friends Center:

The Family and Friends Center is currently located in Building 45, 1^st floor. It is a visiting area where patients and their relatives or friends may enjoy a visit in a home–like atmosphere. There is a stereo, televisions, a game table, coffee–maker and microwave oven available for the convenience of families .

Specialty Services for Inpatients

Specialized treatment and services are offered for those patients with varying needs, as follows:

Substance Abuse Services: group and individual counseling assisting individuals to gain knowledge and insight and develop coping skills to manage use of substances that regularly impact on functioning.

Geriatric Services: Age–specific services for individuals age 65 and above reflective of treatment techniques that address changes in physical, psychosocial and cognitive abilities.

Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT): an inpatient program for individuals with Borderline Personality features that provides individual therapy and group skills training in stress tolerance, emotional regulation, and interpersonal effectiveness.

DBT,S (Substance Abuse): weekly inpatient program emphasizing the use of DBT skills to help in recovery for substance abuse.

Intensive Treatment Unit (ITU): offers short –term specialized services to those patients who require extensive individualized treatment interventions to achieve a state of equilibrium and who require additional safeguards for their personal well–being until they are able to function within a more standard treatment format. Modalities include individual and groups psychotherapies, as well as behavioral programs. After stabilization of the target behaviors, patients are returned to their regular treatment unit. Treatment to individuals who are referred by the court system for observation is also provided.

BRITE Treatment Program: provides a behavioral treatment approach utilizing a token economy program and skills training tailored to the specialized treatment needs of individuals with substantial cognitive deficits that have resulted in impairments in social functioning, self–care, and/or impulse control. Many of these patients also have a secondary Axis ll diagnosis of Mental Retardation (MR).

Bridger Program: this program provides linkage and support for inpatients with long hospital stays when the possibility of discharge becomes imminent. Dedicated "bridger" staff work with patients to enable them to move into the community with greater hope, confidence and an increased probability of success.

Polydipsia Program: a program providing specialized care and treatment for patients who display excessive water drinking, water intoxication, and/or hyponatremia, a potentially life threatening loss of sodium. The focus is on a ward–based token economy system, with additional psychotherapy and psychoeducation to increase knowledge and awareness about the disorder, and behavior therapy to increase skills needed to manage the condition.

Community Services

Pilgrim Psychiatric Center operates a broad range of outpatient services both on campus and throughout the community in Suffolk County. Sites are staffed with psychiatrists, social workers, psychologists, community mental health nurses, rehabilitation and recreation staff, peer specialists, and paraprofessional staff. Services available include: recovery services, treatment services -evaluation, medication, counseling and therapy, vocational services, co-occurring disorder services, life enrichment, peer run services, crisis intervention, psycho-education.

Biannual Family Nights are held at each clinic to offer support from clinic staff and other family members, orientation to services available at our clinics, and education about mental health issues.

For detailed information on intake, treatment and social support services, call the number listed for each location.

Specialty Services for Outpatients

The Intensive Case Management Program provides an intensive level of supervision to those clients who are frequent system users and have specialized needs in the community. This program serves as a support and follows clients throughout outpatient and inpatient admissions.

The Case Management Program is a "step–down" program for those clients who need support to function in the community but do not require the level of intensity provided by the ICM program.

Both Case Management Programs serve consumers in the community but may follow them back into the facility if re–hospitalization becomes necessary.

Crisis Hotline provides 24 hour crisis phone intakes, referrals, and contacts after business hours for psychiatric crisis needs.

Mobile Crisis Teams provide outreach services in Nassau and Suffolk counties for psychiatric emergencies. The Team provides on–site assessment, counseling, referral, and hospitalization, as needed.

Residential Programs

Residential programs range from the semi–independent living of the State Operated Community Residence, to the shorter stay Crisis Residence Units, to the home care of the Family Care program. Each program offers a unique set of advantages to consumers, promoting empowerment and self determination, while ensuring care and safety.

Crisis Residence: This on–campus 17 bed residence provides temporary housing and is an alternative to admission for those consumers who are experiencing housing or other situational crises. Residents receive psychiatric services from Pilgrim's community programs or from other providers as needed.

Family Care: For those consumers who have functional limitations and who need supervision on a continual basis, the homes provided by the Family Care Program offer a family setting. Home services range from a family like setting to the more intensive "personal care" homes for those who need assistance with the most basic aspects of caring for themselves. Homes are located throughout Nassau and Suffolk County.

State Operated Community Residences (SOCR) – sponsored by the New York State Office of Mental Health and Pilgrim Psychiatric Center, ten residences throughout Nassau and Suffolk County provide transitional placement. Homes range from 10 beds to 24 beds and are supervised by staff 24 hours/day. Services are provided to improve independent living skills and enable individuals to move to a less restrictive setting in the community.

Public Notice

To report concerns about patient safety and quality of care, the public can contact:
Pilgrim's Quality Management Department at (631) 761–2912.

The Joint Commission will conduct an accreditation survey of Pilgrim Psychiatric Center during the next eighteen months on or before October 2013.

The purpose of the survey is to evaluate the organization's compliance with nationally established Joint Commission standards. The survey results will be used to determine whether, and the conditions under which, accreditation should be awarded to the organization.

Joint Commission standards deal with organizational quality of care issues and the safety of the environment in which care is provided. Anyone believing that he or she has pertinent and valid concerns about these issues that Pilgrim Psychiatric Center has not addressed is encouraged to contact the administrative staff of the hospital. If the concerns cannot be resolved through the hospital, the individual is encouraged to contact The Joint Commission at:

Office of Quality Monitoring
The Joint Commission
One Renaissance Boulevard
Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181
E-mail: The Joint Commission
Call the toll free number: (800) 994-6610

This notice is posted in accordance with the Joint Commission's requirements and may not be removed before the survey is completed.

Date Posted: April 1, 2012

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