Deschutes County Stabilization Center marks three years of making a difference for many

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- The Deschutes County Stabilization Center has been serving the community as a valuable resource for people experiencing a mental crisis since 2020. This week, it's marking its third anniversary.

The center serves as something of a midway point between responses in the field and emergency room care. People are supported at the "crisis-safe facility," and by the therapists on call. 

Patients voluntarily check themselves in for up to 23 hours, and are never turned away for lack of funds.

The Stabilization Center's success in Bend has encouraged officials like Sen. Ron Wyden to propose similar facilities across the country.

"Crises, like all emotions, whether good or bad, are time-limited in a lot of ways," DCSC Services Manager Adam Goggins said Monday. "There's there's a lot to be said about, you know, kind of giving some space and giving some time for folks to be able to process some of these feelings and some of the difficulty that they're facing."