RALEIGH, NC (WLOS) – The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services has announced a statewide online mental health bed registry aimed at reducing wait times and ensuring that people in crisis receive care as soon as possible.
According to a news release, the Department of Behavioral Health’s Central Availability Navigator (BH SCAN) is now updated hourly instead of once a day and is integrated with the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.
Hotline 988 will now be able to connect to mobile crisis teams when they are dispatched to someone in crisis, allowing them to notify available mental health beds in their area.
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It allows dispatchers of the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline call center to connect to BH SCAN for the presence of a mental health bed in the caller’s area, ensuring there are no interruptions.
“Making BH SCAN available to 988 counselors and improving its accuracy with automatic updates will make it easier for people in North Carolina to get the care they need and deserve in a more coordinated effort,” said NC Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangway, in a news release. “This innovative partnership between providers and facilities across the state is one of the ways we are working to support a mental health care system that works for everyone, ensuring healthy North Carolina.”
According to the release, BH SCAN’s automated bed availability (ABA) functionality will provide real-time information to providers and hospitals across the state who are looking for an available mental health care bed.
Previously, SCAN relied on manual daily updates by hospital staff, which reduced the system’s accuracy and could cause delays in finding an available bed.
Now a new automated bed feature ensures that providers can quickly and accurately place patients across the state and at all levels of care.
The release states that North Carolina is the first state in the nation to have ABA on the clock.
Since BH SCAN’s inception in 2023, it has provided updates to more than 3,500 mental health care beds in 112 facilities across the state.
These facilities are as follows:
- Psychiatric beds
- Alcohol and drug treatment centers
- Substance use disorder care
- Behavioral Health Urgent Care
- Residential Child Care
- Facility-based care and public hospitals
NCDHHS says BH SCAN is a secure portal that allows referral facilities to search for suitable and available inpatient beds based on multiple search criteria, including demographics, accuracy, commitment status and location.
BH SCAN now provides visibility into 80% of the state’s total inpatient psychiatric bed capacity, with more beds expected to be added, according to the release. There are approximately 3,200 inpatient psychiatric beds nationwide.
NCDHHS aims to have all providers upgrade to ABA for BH SCAN by early 2027.
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According to the release, when the ABA expansion went live, North Carolina experienced a 1,400% increase in bed updates per day, meaning providers were more easily able to see current information about available beds.
“BH SCAN is one of the many investments NCDHHS has made to build flexibility and strengthen our system of care to ensure everyone gets the care that’s right for them, where they need it,” said Kelly Crosby, MSW, LCSW, director of NCDHHS’ Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Use Disorders. “Finding the right bed based on one’s medical needs can be a time-consuming process. BH SCAN helps simplify this so people can get help sooner.”
To learn more about NCDHHS’ efforts to increase mental health care in North Carolina, visit over here.
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