Pine Rest’s Pediatric Behavioral Health Center, opening Fall 2025, will feature 66 inpatient beds within three 22-bed units
Pine Rest Christian Mental Health Services will expand pediatric inpatient services within its Pediatric Behavioral Health Center, opening Fall 2025, to 66 beds after receiving State of Michigan approval on July 31 for 40 child and adolescent beds requested through the Certificate of Need (CON) process.
Pine Rest will allocate the newly awarded beds, along with relocating 26 pediatric beds operated through an existing license, to the Pediatric Behavioral Health Center to form three specialized units for children and teens within 134,840 square feet of newly constructed space. Each of the three units will feature 22 private patient rooms and will be located on the first floor of the proposed two-story pediatric center.
The Pediatric Behavioral Health Center will add to Pine Rest’s existing inpatient child and adolescent services, which include a 36-bed Child and Adolescent Unit – 26 of these beds will be relocated to the pediatric center – as well as a 26-bed “flex” unit which, utilizing innovative unit design, can be modified to serve either young adults or teens based on real-time community need. Upon completion of the pediatric center, the organization will offer a total of 102 beds capable of serving children.
Heide Rollings, M.D., medical director of Pine Rest’s Pediatric Behavioral Health Center, noted that the expanded inpatient service will meet a significant community need and is one of several ways in which Pine Rest aims to improve access to the care children and families most urgently need.
“The Michigan community is our community. We don’t just see and hear about children and families who struggle to find the care they need; we feel those struggles, because it’s our friends, family, and neighbors who are in need of help,” Dr. Rollings said. “Right now, Pine Rest and many other organizations are doing incredible work for our kids, but there simply isn’t enough care available. Wait times for many types of behavioral health services are too long. Families are often forced to travel long distances to find accessible care. Sometimes they are even told the services they need don’t exist. The Pediatric Behavioral Health Center will help alleviate that strain for our community.”
Pine Rest received notification of the State’s expedited CON approval on the same day the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), Pine Rest, and health leaders from across the state met on Pine Rest’s campus to discuss the state’s commitment to behavioral health access through nearly $364 million in budget investments.
“Together, the two actions signal a shared commitment between the State of Michigan and healthcare providers to address one of the most pressing health care challenges Michigan residents face. We are extremely thankful to MDHHS for making our CON application a priority by expediting their review,” stated Heather Treib, director of new business development at Pine Rest.
MDHHS Director Elizabeth Hertel underscored the aim to increase access. “Everyone deserves access to quality health care where and when they need it,” she said. “These additional 40 beds will help families receive the care they deserve for their children and is part of the state’s commitment to ensuring access to behavioral health services for Michigan residents of all ages.”
Treib pointed to the need for collaboration. “Mental health concerns, particularly among children and teens, are on the rise. This isn’t something one organization or entity can address alone,” she said. “We’re seeing organizations around the state, and our legislators, agreeing that we can only meet the needs of children and families if we work together to remove barriers to care. The CON approval and State budget investment are examples of this type of collaborative effort, allowing Pine Rest to make a real difference in people’s lives.”
Once completed in 2025, Pine Rest’s Pediatric Behavioral Health Center will feature a full continuum of services to serve children and adolescents from across the state, including:
- 66 child and adolescent patient beds
- Partial hospitalization programs
- Pediatric Psychiatric Urgent Care Center
- Expanded psychological assessment and testing services
- Specialty clinics
- Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility for children and adolescents
Pine Rest projects that, through the addition of new care models and the expansion of existing services, the Pediatric Behavioral Health Center will increase access to inpatient care for an additional 3,000 children per year and to outpatient care for an additional 10,000 children each year.
