Psychiatric ER

University of Maryland Medical Center's 24/7 Psychiatric Emergency Services (PES) program is for people over age 18 who urgently need a psychiatric assessment, evaluation and referral. Services, provided on a walk-in basis, help people to access to mental health and addiction recovery resources.

Patients under the age of 18 can seek help in our Pediatric Emergency Room. 

Getting Here: Location and Directions

What We Offer

The PES program performs triage, evaluation and admission services. We take a team approach to care, with professionals from psychiatry, social work, psychiatric nursing, chemical dependency and community mental health helping with treatment.

Our services include:

• Psychiatric evaluations for the presence of a mental illness
• Initial assessments and reassessments
• Inpatient admission (if necessary)
• Crisis intervention
• Referrals (for medical, dental, legal, social or substance abuse services)
• Ambulatory detoxification (provided by referral only in conjunction with enrollment in an intensive treatment program)

Medication refills, competency evaluations and evaluations for legal and disability claims will be referred to outpatient providers.

We provide consultation services to the adult emergency department and pediatric emergency departments. (Collaboration with the adult emergency department occurs when patients have complex medical or surgical conditions.)

Patients' special needs (language barriers, cognitive disabilities, psychosocial stressors, etc.) are addressed through during the intake, evaluation and assessment. Referrals for community support services reflect the patient's unique needs. We develop a plan of care that is most appropriate for the patient.