Combatting the Pediatric Mental Health Crisis

To meet the growing need for pediatric neurodevelopmental and behavioral health care in Central Virginia, UVA Children’s and Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital are partnering to open a new outpatient clinic in Albemarle County. The UVA Children’s Neurodevelopmental and Behavioral Care clinic will open at 2335 Seminole Lane in mid-2024, staffed by UVA Children’s care providers and supported by a substantial investment from Sentara Martha Jefferson Hospital along with other generous gifts from private donors. The clinic will triple the number of pediatric mental health providers at UVA from 6 to 18, reducing wait times and expanding access by bringing together developmental pediatricians, pediatric psychologists, child psychiatrists, and integrative medicine specialists. “Community members have shared with us the need for easier access to mental and neurodevelopmental health care, and this clinic is designed to do that in a comforting and therapeutic setting,” said Wendy Horton, chief executive officer of UVA Medical Center.