Advocates fear disruption from Cedars psychiatric closures

As Cedars-Sinai Medical Center prepares to shut down its inpatient and outpatient psychiatric programs, advocates and doctors said they fear that it will disrupt patients’ mental health care and could lead to more people ending up homeless or in jail.

The hospital “has literally been a lifeline for thousands of patients who have come to rely on the psychiatric treatment they’ve received here over the years,” said Carole Lieberman, an attending psychiatrist at the hospital. “Where are they going to go now?”’

Grace Ho, 46, suffers from depression and said she has been treated at both of the hospital’s programs. “My heart sank,” she recalled of hearing about the closure.

“I will have to get a new team of doctors,” said Ho, who has private insurance. “It will definitely affect my care.”

The medical center announced the shutdown late last year, saying the decision was in part driven by hospital finances. The inpatient hospital, which has 51 beds but now houses fewer than 10 patients, will close March 9. The outpatient clinic, serving about 500 people, will close July 1. Both have stopped accepting new patients.

The psychiatric medical training program will also close at the end of the year. The hospital will continue to provide psychiatric care in the emergency room, cancer center and other clinical areas.

Staff members are looking for other hospitals and clinics where their patients can seek treatment. But placements can be difficult, depending on patients’ insurance, where they live and whether they have transportation.

Stanley Green, 70, said psychiatrists at Cedars-Sinai have treated him for a decade. Green, who is covered by Medicare and Medi-Cal, said many facilities don’t take patients without private insurance.

“I don’t know where to go really,” he said. “It’s bad.”

Cutting psychiatric services was not an easy decision, said Dr. Itai Danovitch, chair of the psychiatry department. But the medical center had to “prioritize and choose where we think we can be outstanding,” he said.

“It’s the reality we are dealing with,” he said. “It’s very difficult to provide the type of outpatient and inpatient psychiatry programs that we know are important.”

Jane van Loon has worked as a therapist at Cedars-Sinai for more than 10 years and currently leads groups on symptoms management and coping skills. Her patients are already saying goodbye and worried about the future, she said.

The closure comes at a bad time because fiscal pressures have caused mental health services throughout the state to be reduced, she said. “It’s a terrible, terrible problem,” Van Loon said.

Heather Alvarado, who worked as a licensed vocational nurse at Cedars before being laid off last year, said the closure is a huge loss to the mental health community. “It’s one of many,” she said. “It’s already snowballing.”

Patients and others shared concerns and anger last week at a candlelight vigil and walk on the steps of the mental health building. They carried signs that said, “Shame on Cedars” and “Cedars Fails Mental Health Community.”

Eddie Silberman, who has two adult children with schizophrenia, said he was frustrated because Cedars-Sinai’s decision was motivated by money.

“It’s shameful for them to do this,” he said. “It’s a tragedy.”

anna.gorman@latimes.com