Psychiatry

Virtua offers compassionate, evidence-based psychiatric care, from 24/7 crisis intervention to flexible, long-term outpatient support. Our multidisciplinary team of psychiatric specialists and licensed therapists is here to help you or your loved one find stability and start the journey toward lasting mental well-being.

Our Approach to Psychiatric Care

At Virtua, we believe that kindness and responsive patient care are a priority, especially when you're experiencing a mental health crisis. You're not alone, and we're dedicated to delivering exceptional expertise in a safe and supportive environment.

• Community focus: We're dedicated to offering psychiatric care where it's most accessible—integrated into primary and specialty care, in schools, and in our emergency rooms and hospitals.
• Safety and trust: We create a judgment-free environment where you feel safe and supported throughout your treatment and recovery.
• Academic excellence: Our psychiatric residency program means our team is committed to teaching and collaborating with psychiatric medical residents to ensure you receive the latest evidence-based treatments.

Your Care Team

Our multidisciplinary team offers collaborative, evidence-based care. This includes:

• Psychiatrists (MD/DO): Diagnose psychiatric conditions, prescribe appropriate medications, and provide interventional therapies like electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) or transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS)
• Psychiatric nurse practitioners (APN): Diagnose psychiatric conditions, prescribe medications, and provide psychotherapy
• Licensed clinical social workers (LCSW): Provide psychotherapy, including cognitive behavioral therapy

Virtua Psychiatry Services

Immediate Support: 24/7 Crisis Evaluation

During a mental health crisis, getting help immediately is crucial for stabilizing your mental well-being and connecting you to the care and resources necessary to start feeling better.

• Expert psychiatric evaluations and care are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, in the emergency rooms at all Virtua hospitals.
• Our compassionate team will assess your immediate needs to determine the safest and most effective next steps in your recovery—whether that involves short-term inpatient stabilization or connecting you with specialized outpatient programs.
• We also provide these expert consultations for patients already admitted to our inpatient medical and surgical units.

Inpatient Care and Stabilization

When you need a secure environment to focus on healing, Virtua offers short-term inpatient care at Virtua Mount Holly Hospital and Virtua Willingboro Hospital.

• We provide voluntary units that offer dedicated spaces for patients who recognize they need intensive support and choose to admit themselves for care.
• We also offer care in our state-designated, involuntary unit, which provides immediate safety and stabilization for patients experiencing a psychiatric emergency who are unable to seek care on their own.
• Throughout your stay, our caring and attentive team will support you, helping you focus on your recovery.
• We stabilize your crisis with a personalized treatment plan that combines medication management with individual and group therapy that helps you build practical coping skills.
• Before discharge, you'll work closely with a social worker to arrange ongoing therapy and the support resources you need to maintain your wellness at home.

Interventional Psychiatry for Hard-to-Treat Conditions

Our interventional psychiatry program offers advanced, evidence-based procedures for people who have depression that hasn't responded to standard medication and talk therapy (treatment-resistant depression).

• Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS): A non-invasive, outpatient treatment that uses magnetic pulses to stimulate mood-regulating nerve cells in the brain.
• Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT): Widely considered the "gold standard" for severe, treatment-resistant depression, this procedure is safe, quick, and performed under general anesthesia.