Making Room for Mental Health

For patients receiving mental health treatment, everyday stressors can negatively impact their well-being and personal progress. Patients may be tasked with completing homework, practicing certain life skills or engaging in self-care in between sessions, but financial constraints, family dynamics and other barriers can often stand in their way. Without these obstacles, patients often find more time and energy to focus on themselves. Ochsner Health’s Behavioral Health Department created the Code Blue Fund with this specific goal in mind.

“Mental health treatment doesn’t only occur in the office or during a session with a provider,” said Lisa Gentry, Assistant Vice President of Behavioral Health at Ochsner Health. “There’s a lot of work that’s done outside of those sessions as well.”

Supported entirely by donors, the Code Blue Psychiatry Patient Assistance Fund covers a range of expenses that prevent patients from focusing on their mental health, from preventing electricity loss by paying overdue bills or providing groceries for their family to paying first month’s rent for a group home post-hospital discharge. With these needs met, patients are better able to cope with the stresses of daily life and focus on their well-being. “One of the greatest needs the Code Blue Fund provides is hope,” Lisa said.