The Board of Trustees of SolutionHealth, parent organization of Elliot Health System and Southern New Hampshire Health, has formed a joint venture with Acadia Healthcare, a leading provider of behavioral healthcare services across the U.S. to build a new behavioral health hospital in southeast New Hampshire.

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This $60 million investment in the community will significantly increase access to specialty behavioral healthcare, as the new hospital will have 144 beds and a full array of inpatient behavioral health programs and will be carefully designed, creating a therapeutic and welcoming environment for patients, staff and clinicians.

This project will also be supported by $15 million in state funding from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services to defray capital costs for the construction of the new hospital.

One in five U.S. adults experience mental illness each year. And in New Hampshire, mental health issues affect over 1/3 of the population. The need for specialized healthcare facilities that are focused on caring for behavioral health needs is never more apparent than today.

“This joint venture is fully supported by the Boards of Trustees and Executive Leadership across our system as it expands our ability to provide expert care to an ever-expanding facet of the communities we serve,” noted CEO of SolutionHealth, Bradley Kreick. “The goals of the joint venture include increasing behavioral health access in the region, reducing emergency department waiting periods for behavioral health triage and disposition, and providing a state-of-the-art behavioral health center of excellence for patients, close to home.”

Elliot Health System and Southern New Hampshire Health have long been supporting the healthcare needs of residents by offering robust inpatient and outpatient behavioral health services. This joint venture will more than double the inpatient capacity currently offered by these organizations.

“We continue to see long-term boarding of patients in our emergency rooms – rooms that are not equipped for long-term care needs – due to the lack of hospital beds and facilities that are properly equipped and staffed to care for patients in need of specialized services. These patients deserve the best care, and a more healing environment. This investment is needed in our community and we are thrilled to be partnering with Acadia – such a well-respected organization – to build a new facility to support these needs,” noted Greg Baxter, M.D., President & CEO of Elliot Health System.

“Our hospitals have been caring for the behavioral health needs of our community for many years. This new venture combines our efforts and our expertise into a new center of excellence that will offer patients, and staff alike, a modern and safe environment for all. This is surely a win-win,” noted Colin McHugh, President & CEO of Southern New Hampshire Health.

“Acadia is proud to be partnering with a premier health system like SolutionHealth,” said Chris Hunter, CEO of Acadia Healthcare. “This new patient-centered hospital will provide treatment programs and healing across the full continuum of behavioral health services for those in need throughout southeast New Hampshire. This effort is core to our mission of bringing life-saving care to areas with the greatest need.”

About SolutionHealth

SolutionHealth is a highly coordinated, regional health care network based in Southern New Hampshire. Its purpose is to better serve the health care needs and interests of southern New Hampshire as a region by improving and increasing access, quality, value, and community benefits. Members include Elliot Health System, Southern New Hampshire Health and Home Health & Hospice Care.

About Acadia Healthcare

Acadia is a leading provider of behavioral healthcare services across the United States. As of March 31, 2023, Acadia operated a network of 250 behavioral healthcare facilities with approximately 11,100 beds in 39 states and Puerto Rico. With approximately 23,000 employees serving more than 75,000 patients daily, Acadia is the largest stand-alone behavioral healthcare company in the U.S. Acadia provides behavioral healthcare services to its patients in a variety of settings, including inpatient psychiatric hospitals, specialty treatment facilities, residential treatment centers and outpatient clinics.

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