Sedgwick County Commissioners have asked staff to begin negotiations on an 11-acre property in southwest Wichita that will be the site for a regional psychiatric hospital.
A site review committee looked at 11 properties and three buildings and narrowed the list to four finalists. The committee was made up of Sedgwick County staff and officials from the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services. A town hall meeting was held December 13th to answer questions from the public on the four locations.
In a special meeting Friday, county commissioners agreed to move ahead with the acquisition of property at MacArthur and Meridian. The Lange Community Foundation has proposed to donate the property. The plan is to develop the site as a 50-bed psychiatric hospital that would serve south central Kansas, but it could be expanded to 100 or 150 beds in the future.
The South Central Regional Psychiatric Hospital will serve acute inpatient mental health patients. It will also be the location for adult forensic beds to alleviate jail overcrowding and shorten wait times on pending evaluations and treatment. The facility will expand access to additional in-patient mental health beds in the region and allow patients to remain closer to home and family while receiving care.
Kansas currently operates state psychiatric hospitals with similar treatment in Osawatomie and Larned.
Commissioner Sarah Lopez said an advisory panel is recommending going to 100 beds at the start because it may be more difficult to expand the facility later. She also asked for a town hall meeting to answer questions from residents who live near the proposed site. Commissioner David Dennis said the new facility will benefit Sedgwick County and surrounding counties and it will help area sheriff’s offices in meeting needs of inmates with mental health issues.
The hospital is expected to be ready by the end of 2026. A regional hospital in south central Kansas would address the shortage of in-patient mental health beds in the region, allowing patients to remain closer to home and family while receiving care. The facility would also reduce jail overcrowding by shortening the wait time for inmates pending evaluations or treatment.
Kansas Governor Laura Kelly announced in May that KDADS had awarded $25 million to Sedgwick County to create a new regional hospital. In addition, $15 million from the State General Fund was earmarked by the State Finance Council in December 2022 for the planning and initial design work for a regional state psychiatric hospital.
The Governor has established a 14-member South Central Regional Psychiatric Hospital Advisory Panel to gather public input and make recommendations on the facility’s operation, location, and workforce development needs. The Panel will look at how a state hospital would fit into existing or planned services in the region and identify existing resources, gaps in services, and opportunities to improve access to mental health services.
