In keeping with its continued commitment to provide services to the youth of Lehigh Valley and surrounding areas, KidsPeace, a free-standing hospital for children in crisis in Schnecksville, has expanded, adding eight beds to the previous 96-bed facility.

When the new unit began welcoming children Jan. 28, the facility had a 104-bed capacity, with an additional 12-bed unit slated to open March 1.

George Shopland, director of hospital services, offered some insight into the need for increased availability of acute care mental health services for children in the area.

"In 2014, we had an unusually high number of referrals," Shopland remarked. "Through analysis and working with Lehigh County Mental Health, we made a decision with the rationale we wanted to treat local kids locally."

According to Shopland, about 80 percent of children are directly admitted from local emergency rooms.

When a child needs a psychiatric hospitalization, a bed search ensues.

If no local bed is available, a concentric search continues. Unfortunately, sometimes the child may be placed as far away as Pittsburgh.

The distance between family and child can then preclude effective treatment.

"The more the families are involved in treatment and the treatment process, the more we can engage them in helping better the outcome," said Shopland. "The average length of a hospital stay is seven to 10 days. Our main function is to stabilize the crisis."

In addition to providing crisis care close to home, KidsPeace also offers a continuum of care after discharge from the hospital.

The coordination of aftercare is more easily achieved when localized.

According to Shopland, the increased need for psychiatric services for children is in part the result of an increasingly complex society.

"Kids in this generation are just facing levels of stress none of us did growing up" Shopland said.

He also attributes the increasing numbers to a heightened awareness and acceptance of mental health illness.

"The stigma for mental health issues has gone down," he said. "Also, local schools are more educated in identifying issues."

With more families seeking help, the hospital was at times full and unable to meet the community's demand.

Therefore, the time was right for repurposing an area previously used for residential care into the new hospital unit to cater to adolescents between the ages of 8-12.

The hospital is divided into seven units.

Each unit is small and groups children by age range, allowing for highly specialized care.

"KidsPeace believes very fully involving the family and the community is a precursor to success," Shopland said. "We are hoping to make this a one-stop for them.

"The children come in in crisis. We are able to stabilize them and help them move forward; and this expansion allows our kids to remain close to home and allows the family to stay engaged in treatment more fully."

KidsPeace offers a comprehensive range of treatment programs including residential treatment, community-based programs and accredited educational services to children, families and communities across the United States.

The North Whitehall expansion is part of a larger growth for Kids-Peace, which now also offers services to adults under the name Orchard Behavioral Health.

Walk-in clinics, designed to serve children and adults, are already open in Bethlehem, Allentown, and Tobyhanna.

A new patient portal opened Feb. 2 at Sacred Heart Hospital, Allentown.