CaringWorks Opens Outpatient Mental and Behavioral Health Services Treatment Facility in College Park
Tuesday, June 28th, 2022
CaringWorks, one of the largest providers of supportive housing in the metropolitan Atlanta area for 20 years, has opened their Southside office in College Park, Ga., to expand accessibility to mental health services for the underserved residents of Southside Atlanta and surrounding communities. The new office, located at 1745 Phoenix Blvd., Suite 350, provides clinical, community-based services for low-income, uninsured and underinsured individuals with behavioral health conditions in order to improve access to quality outpatient care. Addressing mental health concerns is a critical part of CaringWorks’ mission to end homelessness as the National Alliance on Mental Health estimates that one in five people experiencing homelessness in the United States have a serious mental health condition.
“On CaringWorks’ 20th anniversary, the opening of this office represents a milestone for expanding access to comprehensive outpatient behavioral health services to those most in need in Atlanta’s Southside communities,” said CaringWorks CEO Carol Collard. “In the past, there have been significant challenges to accessing quality behavioral health services in South Fulton County and Clayton County, and we are thrilled to be able to part of the solution.”
Millions of people in the U.S. are affected by mental illness each year, and the numbers have been growing exponentially in recent years following the pandemic, with some estimates saying the need for access to mental health services has doubled or tripled. A review of Georgia’s 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment and Implementation Plans states that mental health services are a critical need in the most deprived Metro Atlanta communities, including Atlanta’s Southside communities.
“For so long, we have siloed mental and behavioral health as not part of whole health. And I think CaringWorks understands that behavioral health is whole health,” College Park Mayor Bianca Motley Broom said at the recent ribbon-cutting ceremony. “We are building the community that we deserve, and part of that is taking care of our community and taking care of individuals.”
“This is not only good for College Park, but it is good for the whole Southside of Atlanta,” added College Park Councilman Ken Allen. “We welcome CaringWorks to College Park and look forward to residents of our community benefitting from better access to quality behavioral health services.”