To meet growing need, Akron Children’s expands inpatient behavioral health, adds crisis stabilization unit
08-21-2026 (Akron, Ohio)
On Tuesday, Aug. 25, Akron Children’s will take a huge step forward in meeting the demand for the highest-levels of pediatric behavioral healthcare when it opens its expanded 30-bed inpatient behavioral health unit.
A new feature of the unit is a crisis stabilization unit where parents will stay with their child as a full partner in the therapy. The unit, previously 24 beds, is moving from the 8th floor of the main hospital building to the 5th floor of Akron Children’s Kay Jewelers Pavilion. The space has the capacity to expand to 40 beds.
The planning for the unit move and expansion has been in the works for several years.
“The new unit will not only expand Akron Children’s capacity for inpatient behavioral healthcare, it will reshape how that care is delivered,” said Dr. Eva Szigethy, the Lois C. Orr Endowed Chair in Pediatric Psychiatry at Akron Children’s.
“This new unit is much more than a larger space with more beds,” she said. “It’s really reengineering how we provide behavioral healthcare and how we train staff to optimize the safety of our patients in a therapeutic environment.”
The new unit features a tiered hospitalization experience with different “sub-units” and programming for patients ages 5 up to 18.
Based on the patient’s diagnosis and the level of support needed, the patient will be assigned to a regular acute care unit, high acute care unit or the crisis stabilization unit.
“The new crisis stabilization unit provides a brief, intensive crisis management for kids who require a short hospitalization, averaging three to four days,” said Dr. Jason Spivey Sr., Vice Chair of Behavioral Health at Akron Children’s. “This will offer a new care pathway for patients often seen in the Emergency Room who don’t require a long stay for treatment. The objective is truly, as the name suggests, to give the child and family the crisis management skills they need as well as a few days to prepare at home.”
Parents will be connected to resources at Akron Children’s or in the community, learn how to safe-proof their house, get extra support for their child in school and benefit from more intensive parent training.
Donna Koterba, Director of Inpatient Behavioral Health, said the unit’s design uses therapeutic architecture, incorporating color and natural light in ways that have been shown to reduce stress and promote healing.
It features a spacious gym for structured group activities and exercise, a multi-media room, a sensory stimulation room and a large outdoor space.
Like all children’s hospitals, Akron Children’s has seen behavioral health emerge as one of the most in-demand services over the past few decades.
· One in four Akron Children’s pediatric primary care visits involves a behavioral health concern.
· Over the past year, more than 4,500 youth were seen in the Emergency Department for a behavioral health concern.
· Even with an integrated behavioral health model, the average wait time to see a therapist is still more than two months.
“We’ve spent years building a model of care that integrates behavioral health into primary care, meeting children and families where they are already showing up and helping patients reach the right level of care at the right time,” said Dr. Szigethy.
The expanded and updated inpatient unit gives the team new tools for treatment and new hope for families and young people in the region struggling with anxiety, depression and other behavioral health challenges.
