The Brattleboro Retreat marked the opening of its redesigned Admissions Department and Medical Clinic on Tuesday with an afternoon ribbon cutting ceremony and formal dedication of a new bronze sculpture situated outside the Admissions Department entrance. The six foot tall, 350 pound bronze sculpture, entitled “A Matter of Balance,” is the creation of Vermont artist Susan Read Cronin of Manchester Center, whose mother, Signa Lynch Read, generously donated the piece to the Retreat in honor of her daughter (the artist’s sister), who died in 2013. The piece depicts an elephant atop a unicycle.
Photo of (left to right) Dr. Rob Simpson, Signa L. Read, Susan Read Cronin, and Paul Parker in front of Cronin’s bronze sculpture entitled “A Matter of Balance.”
The ceremony was attended by Retreat employees and board members along with Cronin, Read, and invited guests from the Brattleboro community.
Dr. Rob Simpson, president and CEO, served as master of ceremonies. In his opening remarks, Simpson said, “Susan and I bonded quickly in our shared belief that it takes enormous courage to live with a mental illness in a world where stigma and a lack of understanding about the true nature of mental illness is so pervasive. I instantly knew that she could bring a necessary voice through her work to the Retreat and to our patients.”
Cronin also addressed the gathering, and told guests, “It is an honor and a privilege to be able to dedicate this sculpture to my sister. She certainly had a good ride on the wobbly wheel of life and I know that if she were here today, she would be joining me in admiring all those who pass by this sculpture on their way to the Retreat’s Admissions Department.”
With an ongoing increase in the number of patients being served, along with a greater diversity of patient populations seeking mental health and addiction care, the Retreat launched major renovations to its Admissions Department and Medical Clinic in July with an eye toward enhancing the hospital’s greeting and intake functions.
The Admissions department redesign includes a more patient-friendly Central Registration desk with open concept to offer a more welcoming environment. Other improvements include a new outpatient call center as well as a new inpatient call center. A new interview room adjacent to the registration desk has been added for private, quick consults, if needed, with incoming patients.
The Retreat’s Medical Clinic now has 3 private interview rooms for patient intake/interviews along with new exam rooms designed to more easily facilitate interactions with patients as well as use of the hospital’s electronic health record. Patients awaiting assignment to an inpatient can do so in new waiting area that is separate from the main waiting area. In addition, the Medical Clinic now offers a discreet child/family intake area located at the far end of the clinic. It includes a dedicated exam room, interview room, and family waiting room.
To accommodate forensic admissions, the Retreat has created a separate registration room, exam room, and security contraband room located in an area that can be accessed immediately upon entering the Medical Clinic.
The project was spearheaded by Vice President of Operations Gerri Cote, who told guests “The renovations we have made to the Admissions Department and Medical Clinic are part of our ongoing commitment to invest in, and to improve, our beautiful but aging facility. Though there is still more to do to take care of this historic and beautiful campus, the completion of this project brings us closer to our shared vision of a modernized facility whose environment matches the quality of the clinical care we provide.”
The Brattleboro Retreat, founded in 1834, is a not-for-profit, regional specialty psychiatric hospital and addictions treatment center, providing a full range of diagnostic, therapeutic and rehabilitation services for individuals of all ages and their families. Recognized as a national leader in the treatment mental illness and addiction, the Brattleboro Retreat offers a high quality, individualized, comprehensive continuum of care including inpatient, partial hospitalization, residential and outpatient treatment.
BRATTLEBORO, VT (September 23, 2014)—The Brattleboro Retreat