2023 HEALTH CARE EDITION
attached to the network’s current inpatient behav- ioral health hospital, at 1600 May St. in Fort Worth, which will allow for a “smooth continuum of care,” Virnoche said. Filling the gap JPS operates Tarrant County’s only psychiatric emergency center. The center provides services for voluntary and involuntary patients in mental health crises, such as severe symptoms of depression, anxiety or other con- ditions that are di cult to control. While there are no mental health hospitals in the cities of Grapevine, Colleyville and Southlake, the closest available resources are Methodist Health System’s psychiatric inpatient hospital at its Rich- ardson facility and Texas Health Resources’s Behav- ioral Health Hospital in Arlington. Help can also be found at My Health My Resources of Tarrant County which aids in providing mental health resources to people in the county who are uninsured. According to JPS, its current facility is among the busiest psychiatric hospitals in the nation, providing treatment for adults and teens with psychiatric ill- ness—averaging 20,000 patients a year. Part of this growth in demand comes from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Ti any Young, a spokesperson for the Texas Health Human Services Commission. “The COVID-19 pandemic created a steep rise in
anxiety, depression and stress across the state, and an unprecedented demand for mental health services,” Young said in an email. Most North Texas counties are designated as men- tal health workforce shortage areas, Young said. A health professional shortage is identi ed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. A short- age area is an area, population or facility experienc- ing a shortage of providers for primary care, dental or mental health care, she said. The supply and demand for psychiatrists are both projected to grow by about 17% between 2017 and 2030 in North Texas, according to a study by Texas Department of State Health Services. This number is determined by full-time equivalents, or FTEs, which measure how many full-time employees a business needs to operate. While the supply is projected to grow, the demand will exceed supply with the shortage of psychiatrists increasing from 361 to 425 employees by 2030. “North Texas ... faces a shortage of mental health professionals, and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission is working with [local mental health authorities] and their partners to meet the mental health needs of communities,” Young said. Cody Thorn contributed to this report.
By 2030, the demand for psychiatrists in North Texas is projected to exceed supply by 425 full-time equivalents or employees who work at least 30 hours per week.
Supply Demand
1,164
994
1,200
800
739
633
400
0
2017
2030
Mental health care can be accessed through various avenues, but Tarrant County residents’ might not have as many options with fewer mental health professionals in comparison to the county’s 2.21 million population.
Psychiatrist: 6.7 per 100,000 residents 149
Licensed psychologist: 14.8 per 100,000 residents 328
Licensed professional counselor: 87.8 per 100,000 residents
1,943
For more information, visit communityimpact.com .
SOURCE: DEPARTMENT OF STATE HEALTH SERVICES COMMUNITY IMPACT
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GRAPEVINE COLLEYVILLE SOUTHLAKE EDITION • JUNE 2023
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