Bert Nash Center expanding hours to meet needs of community

For more than 70 years, the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center has been serving the residents of Douglas County.

During that time, the Center has had to adapt and adjust to the changing needs of the community and people’s schedules.

To better meet those needs, the Bert Nash Center will expand its hours of operation to 8:00 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Friday. The need for services is so great that the Center will also be expanding its clinical staff to keep pace with the demand.

“I’m really excited about this change, because we are going to be more available to the community and be able to meet a wider array of schedules,” said Stephen O’Neill, Bert Nash Center Chief Operations Officer. “We recognize that in our ever-evolving world, schedules are complicated, and we have to be available at more and different times. That’s what expanding to 8 is all about, is making sure that our community, which so strongly supports the Bert Nash Center, has access to us when they need us.”

Currently, the Center is open from 8:30 to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Friday. The new hours will take effect June 1.

Not only will this change expand the Center’s hours of operation, but the hope is it will increase the number of people who can receive mental health services.

“Expanding doesn’t just add hours, but it adds to the total number of people we serve,” O’Neill said. “We really hope the community will take advantage of these hours and avail themselves of these services.”

The Center’s expanded hours are part of the larger community health plan, which includes the construction of the crisis recovery center. The crisis center, located north of the Bert Nash Center, will open in February 2022.

“The expanded hours fit in with our overall community strategy around increasing access to care,” O’Neill said. “We have a responsibility to be available to this community.”

The expanded hours also fit in with the Center’s core values of compassion, integrity, and equity, on a foundation of hope.

“This is such a positive step,” O’Neill said. “We need to be leaders in providing services and meeting the diversity of community needs.” 

The Bert Nash Center is currently undergoing the accreditation of its services through the internationally recognized Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF).  Expanding hours to better meet the needs of the community is part of that process.

“Excellence is what we’re about, which is why we chose to get CARF accredited,” O’Neill said. “Expanding our hours is another step on the path toward excellence.”