Emergency Services
If you or someone you know is in the process of harming themselves or has just harmed themselves, then call 911 immediately.
Horizon’s experienced Emergency Services clinicians are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to assess and assist in psychiatric emergencies. If you believe that you or someone you love is experiencing a psychiatric emergency that could lead to self-harm or the harm of others, our Emergency clinicians are here to help. All assessments are conducted in a safe environment with the utmost respect and care. The goal is to provide a referral for the appropriate level of treatment. Evaluations of both mental and physical health are conducted in a safe and non-threatening environment. Clients can be referred to several levels of treatment including inpatient hospitalization, residential crisis services, detoxification or other substance use services, intensive outpatient services or less intensive therapy.
Horizon clinicians make themselves readily available to the public, first responders and local hospitals. If you or someone you love is in need of Horizon’s Emergency Services please call 434-477-5000, or our after-hours emergency number 434-522-8191. You can also dial 911.
On call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, our crisis intervention team aims to stabilize individuals in a psychiatric crisis and prevent hospitalization, if possible. In addition, they help the client and family to locate community resources that will provide ongoing support, treatment and rehabilitation.
Should you or someone you love need crisis intervention, rest assured we treat every client with compassionate care. The hope is to provide them with the coping skills, support services and follow up treatment that will prevent another mental health emergency.
Criteria: A client that needs this service will be in crisis or have a severe or complex mental health condition(s). This client will be unable to access the services and support they need because of the level of disability, the inability to care for oneself or the need for a highly structured or secure environment. We serve the uninsured, under-insured, and those who have insurance; as well as, those who are otherwise economically unable to access appropriate service providers or alternatives.
When a person is hospitalized for their mental illness, Horizon can provide a hospital liaison to immediately begin working on their discharge plans. When handling cases of people with severe mental illness, it is very important to begin working on goals for improvement, stabilization and life back in the community. Hospital liaisons work to ensure a smooth transition into life after hospitalization. In addition, the liaison works with the current case manager to ensure that the appropriate level of service is provided to the client once he is living independently. If the person is not a current Horizon client, the liaison will coordinate an intake to the agency, or to an alternate external service provider.
Criteria for Admission: A client diagnosed with a Serious Emotional Disturbance (ages 5- 18) or Serious Mental Illness (ages 18 and up) who has been admitted to a psychiatric hospital is eligible for this service.
Horizon clinicians monitor and provide case management, substance use services, individual therapy, psycho-social rehabilitation and other identified services to individuals acquitted of criminal charges because they were determined to be Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity (NGRI). Prior to a client’s release from a state hospital, the Horizon NGRI Coordinator collaborates with state hospital staff to create a Conditional Release Plan for the individual which details all services and structured activities that will be provided to the person as a condition of their release. This plans must be approved by the courts before an individual is released from the hospital for community-based monitoring. For the first year, a monthly report is sent to the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services describing the NGRI acquittee’s progress and stability. After that, a report will be sent to the court detailing the acquittee’s progress and stability every six months.
Criteria for Admission: These services are provided only to those individuals that have been evaluated while committed to a state hospital and determined appropriate for community-based management.
Horizon Behavioral Health provides a wide variety of forensic services for both adults and children. Services are referred through Juvenile and Domestic Court Services, Circuit Court, Federal Probation, Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority, Lynchburg Regional Juvenile Detention Center, The Department of Social Services, walk-in services, or through family referral sources. All Services are provided in the least restricted environment by clinicians trained to work with this individual population.
Many of the people in our jails and prisons have more than just a rap sheet; they also suffer from severe mental illness. Providing mental health services for offenders is imperative to getting them on the right track, to reduce or eliminate their interaction with law enforcement. Typically, this evaluation is done to determine if the individual is competent to stand trial. All forensic evaluations are completed by a forensically trained psychologist or psychiatrist.
Criteria for Admission: At the request of law enforcement or judge, a psychological evaluation can be done on anyone facing criminal charges.
As part of the regional CIT, Horizon clinicians train local law enforcement officers to properly assist a person in mental health crisis. This training reduces unnecessary arrests as well as officer time in local emergency rooms.
Criteria for Admission: CIT training is open to police officers and others that act as first responders.
Without Horizon's mental health services for offenders, transition back into society can be extremely difficult. Horizon clinicians help inmates with mental illness develop life plans, and link them to services while in jail and once they are released. The ultimate goal is to reduce the rate of recidivism in our communities.
Criteria for Admission: Referal by the jail’s mental health staff.
This restorative treatment focuses on strategies to stop the abusive behavior and to take responsibility for harm done. It has been shown that treatment for sexual offenders significantly reduces their likelihood of offending again.
Criteria for Admission: The offender is usually referred by his probation officer. The referral can be based on a recommendation made following the completion of a sexual psycho-social evaluation completed by a psychologist trained in sex offender treatment and evaluation.
If someone is deemed “incompetent to stand trial” through an initial psychological evaluation, a judge will often call upon Horizon’s qualified restoration counselor to provide services. The ultimate goal is to have the person understand the legal charges brought against him and to assist the attorney in the legal process.
Criteria for Admission: An individual is referred for outpatient restoration to competence services if the initial psychological evaluation recommends that the individual can be served on an outpatient basis in either the jail or office setting.
Crisis Intervention Services offer direct mental health care to non-hospitalized both children and adults experiencing an acute crisis. The goals are to avert hospitalization or re-hospitalization, provide normative environments with a high assurance of safety and security for crisis response, stabilize individuals in psychiatric crisis, and mobilize the resources of the community support system, family members, and others for ongoing maintenance and rehabilitation.
Criteria for Admission: Clients must be experiencing an acute psychiatric crisis as determined by a clinician. The crisis must jeopardize their current community living situation.
Horizon Behavioral Health provides a wide variety of forensic services for children. Services are referred through Juvenile and Domestic Court Services, Circuit Court, Federal Probation, Blue Ridge Regional Jail Authority, Lynchburg Regional Juvenile Detention Center, The Department of Social Services, walk-in services, or through family referral sources. All Services are provided in the least restricted environment by clinicians trained to work with this individual population.
Horizon provides court ordered assessments and ongoing mental health and substance use treatment to youth who are referred by the Juvenile Justice System.
Criteria for Admission: Clients must be referred for service by the Juvenile Justice System.
Horizon provides the court ordered evaluation of a youth’s ability to understand and participate in their defense during a trial. If found incompetent, court ordered education is required to restore youth to competence. Outreach from Horizon’s Wellness Center on Langhorne Road is available.
Criteria for Admission: The court must order an evaluation and education for a youth that has been charged with a crime.
This is an intensive treatment program for youth who have been found guilty of a sexual offense. It includes a combination of education, individual, group and family therapy. Depending on the specific needs of the youth, treatment may take between one to two years.
Criteria for Admission: The youth must be adjudicated of a sexual offense and ordered to treatment by the court system.
