Katie Blessing Center of Charlotte has announced a joint initiative with Atrium Health to expand access to pediatric behavioral healthcare for children and families across North Carolina, supported by a $5 million commitment from Atrium Health over three years. The commitment includes essential operational and consultative services for Katie Blessing Center’s 48 acute inpatient pediatric behavioral health beds. Located in east Charlotte, the Center will serve children and adolescents ages 5–17.
“Meeting the behavioral health needs of children in our community will take all of us, and it requires meaningful investment, collaboration and action,” said Lisa McCanna, vice president of the behavioral health service line at Atrium Health. “We share Katie Blessing Center’s commitment to caring for children and families, and this collaboration allows us to bring our clinical expertise, resources and operational capabilities together to expand the care available in our community. It’s about creating more capacity, more options and a stronger path to care for families when they need it most.”
Katie Blessing Center and Atrium Health will work together to expand and strengthen care for children experiencing behavioral health crises, combining Katie Blessing Center’s commitment to this vulnerable population with Atrium Health’s clinical expertise and operational resources. Support from Atrium Health will include Epic Connect electronic health record technology, pharmacy staffing and equipment, laboratory services, medical care support and coordination, and patient transportation. Atrium Health will also help ensure children receive the appropriate level of care and coordinate insurance coverage for treatment.
“This partnership represents a significant investment in our children and the families who need us,” said Anthony Trotman, Chief Executive Officer of Katie Blessing Center and Executive Director of The Katie Blessing Foundation. “Atrium Health’s commitment will help us put essential services and systems in place as we prepare to open our doors. Together, we are expanding access to care and giving families greater hope during some of their most difficult moments.”
For families seeking intensive behavioral health treatment for a child, finding the right care can be difficult. Katie Blessing Center and Atrium Health aim to help close that gap by expanding pediatric inpatient capacity and strengthening access to coordinated behavioral health services for children and families across the region.
The announcement comes on the heels of Atrium Health’s transformative $340 million investment to expand and strengthen behavioral healthcare across the region, including plans for a new behavioral health hospital location serving children and adults in the greater Charlotte area and beyond, along with broader efforts to expand access to behavioral health services in the communities Atrium Health serves.
Located at 5516 Central Avenue, Katie Blessing Center is being developed to provide a continuum of pediatric behavioral health services, including behavioral health urgent care, acute inpatient treatment, and a planned psychiatric residential treatment program.
About Katie Blessing Center
Founded by Starmount Healthcare, Katie Blessing Center’s mission is rooted in early intervention, recognizing the importance of supporting young minds during their formative years. The facility will be the first child and adolescent psychiatric facility in North Carolina to address the current pediatric mental health crisis through comprehensive service and personalized care, including urgent care, inpatient, residential, and outpatient services under one roof. Follow Katie Blessing Center on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.