Prairie St. John’s officially opens new Replacement Facility

Photo by: Prairie St. John's
Photo by: Prairie St. John's

(Fargo, ND) -- A long wait is over for more aide for those needing behavioral health services in Fargo.

Prairie St. John’s Wednesday officially cut the ribbon on its new replacement facility, something many with the organization say was years in the making.

“This facility represents a significant investment in addressing the behavioral health needs of our region and shows our commitment to providing high quality care to meet those needs," said CEO of Prairie St. John's Jeff Herman in a statement released to WDAY Radio.

Key features of this new facility include: 

  • A state-of-the-art 128-bed acute behavioral health hospital, an increase from the previous 110 beds
  • An investment of $47 million for new facility construction
  • Specialized programming including an Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) suite and physician led medication-assisted treatment
  • Enhanced and expanded intensive day programs and outpatient care
  • Increased collaboration of multidisciplinary teams including psychiatrists, internal medicine physicians, other specialists, certified clinical pharmacists, social workers, psychologists, therapists and other clinical support staff.
  • Will employ more than 350 people including clinicians, nurses, mental health technicians, activity therapists, support staff and administration.

“The need for effective behavioral health services continues to increase," said Executive Director of FirstLink Jennifer Illich. "We look forward to continuing to partner with Prairie St. John’s to meet these needs.” FirstLink is a regional resource center that operates the 211 resource line and the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline.

In North Dakota, suicide is the leading cause of death among people between the ages of 10 and 24, according to the Centers for Disease Control. The CDC reports that since 2020 the pandemic increased the risk of suicide for many Americans. Mental Health Outcomes reports that in the fall of 2021 33% of adults in North Dakota suffered symptoms of depression and/or anxiety.

For more information on Prairie St. John's, click here.