STATE opens interim in-patient center for poor mental patients

<br>TULSA, Okla. (AP) _ The state Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Department opened a 26-bed inpatient treatment center Monday for the poor being discharged from Parkside hospital. <br><br>The

Tuesday, August 21st 2001, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

TULSA, Okla. (AP) _ The state Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services Department opened a 26-bed inpatient treatment center Monday for the poor being discharged from Parkside hospital.

The Tulsa facility will provide interim inpatient care for indigents for four months until three health care providers make arrangements to offer similar services, spokeswoman Rosemary Brown said.

Parkside planned to have all state patients discharged by Monday, but had not completed all of them, Brown said.

Negotiations between Parkside and state mental health officials deteriorated after the state last month rejected Parkside's bid for an additional $3 million in its $10 million contract.

The hospital had lost between $200,000 and $300,000 each month and had absorbed $3.6 million so far this year to provide care and additional services, officials have said.

The Department of Mental Health made arrangements to transfer Parkside clients to Associated Centers for Therapy, Grand Lake Mental Health Center and Family & Children's Services.

The three are providing outpatient services under a contract with the state.

But each must have a plan to provide inpatient treatment, Brown said. Although they do not have their own inpatient units, they will contract with another center to provide the services.

``We're making this transition very rapidly, so they haven't had time to identify those contractors,'' she said.