From Last Resort to First Support: How Hospitals Can Lead the Next Era of Behavioral Health

Across the country, hospitals are experiencing the same reality: behavioral health demand keeps rising while access remains limited. Too often, the emergency department becomes the default entry point for patients in crisis. The result? Higher costs, overburdened staff, and care that arrives far too late.

In partnership with the American Hospital Association, CredibleMind is co-hosting the AHA Affinity Forum: Advancing Population-Based Behavioral Health Inside and Outside the Hospital Walls. This multi-part series explores how hospitals can strengthen behavioral health prevention and treatment for patients, staff, and communities.

The first session, Community Health Strategies to Advance Behavioral Health, brought together hospital leaders, clinicians, and system innovators. Their shared call was clear: hospitals must shift from being the place of last resort to becoming the organization of first support.

Meet the Panel

Deryk Van Brunt, DrPH
CEO, CredibleMind Clinical Professor, UC Berkeley School of Public Health

Nancy Myers
Vice President of Leadership and System Innovation, American Hospital Association

Arpan Waghray, M.D.
Chief Executive Officer, Providence’s Well Being Trust

Jonathan Adler, MD, MS, FACEP
Chief Medical Officer, Co-Editor-in-Chief CredibleMind

Why the Current System is Unsustainable

Behavioral health needs are pressing, persistent, and costly:

• High prevalence. Anxiety, depression, and related conditions remain elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels. This puts pressure on costly care resources by driving unnecessary ED visits.
• Access deserts. More than one-third of U.S. residents live in areas without sufficient behavioral health professionals.
• Costly comorbidity. Patients with both physical and behavioral health conditions face higher readmissions, complications, and expenses.
• Long delays. On average, people wait 8–10 years from first symptoms to treatment, and 3–6 months once they seek care.

Dr. Deryk Van Brunt put it: “Our system today is reactive, not proactive… and it is failing the individuals we serve, and creating unneeded costs for hospitals and health systems.”

A New Model: Population Behavioral Health

The panel called for a shift toward a population behavioral health model that blends prevention, self-care, navigation, and clinical services. This model addresses the three overlapping communities hospitals serve: patients, their own workforce, and the larger population.

Key elements include:

• Prevention and early intervention. Screen for risk early and connect people to appropriate support.
• Evidence-based self-care. Three out of four people experiencing distress say they first want to know what they can do for themselves or a loved one.
• Right-level navigation. Those at lower risk can be supported with self-care, while higher-risk individuals are connected to therapy, peer support, or medical care.
• Workforce support. Many caregivers struggle in silence; hospitals must create confidential, easy-to-use solutions to strengthen staff wellbeing and reduce turnover.
• Community partnerships. Schools, faith organizations, public health, and justice systems can extend hospitals’ reach into everyday life.

Dr. Jon Adler illustrated the urgency with a striking comparison: “Deaths from heart disease have declined dramatically thanks to public health strategies. Deaths from suicide continue to rise. We have the tools to bend this curve too — but only if we act.”

The takeaway: hospitals don’t need to solve the behavioral health crisis alone. They can convene, align, and activate partners and resources around them.

From Talk to Action: What Hospitals Can Do Now

Throughout the session, several actionable steps emerged that hospitals can take:

• Create a digitally-integrated solution. Offer one simple place where patients, staff, and community members can find self-care, screening, and local resources.
• Normalize help-seeking. Leaders modeling vulnerability and practical solutions build a culture where it’s safe to seek support.
• Embed support into daily workflows. QR codes on student IDs, resource links in discharge packets, or handouts at vital records counters make access seamless.
• Measure what matters. Move from dollars spent or programs launched to tracking avoided ED visits, increased in-network utilization, and behavior change.

Arpan Waghray reminded attendees: “None of us can live long enough to learn only from our own mistakes. We must learn from each other — and we can all do something about this problem, starting today.”

The Opportunity

By reframing behavioral health as a population-level responsibility, hospitals can prevent crises, strengthen their workforce, and meet rising demand without overwhelming limited clinical capacity. The moment to act is here.

Continue the conversation:

• Join the next session in the AHA Affinity Series to explore how digital strategies and AI can scale behavioral health self-care
• Contact us to learn how you can bring this population behavioral health approach to your hospital or community
• Download the Community Coalition and Sustainability Toolkit to unlock the power of partnerships and tackle behavioral health challenges in new ways—even during challenging budget times