New primary care center in Waterbury offers behavioral health services

A nonprofit substance abuse network celebrated the opening of its first primary care center in Waterbury on Friday.

McCall Behavioral Health Network will provide primary care services including preventative care, vaccinations, health screenings as well as an adolescent services program.

“We can take care of their primary care needs, we can take care of their mental health needs, kids, adults, families, all here,” Maria Coutant Skinner, president and CEO of McCall Behavioral Health Network, said.

The adolescent services program will include individual, family and group therapy along with psychiatric services and an intensive outpatient program.

Joy Pendola, the chief clinical officer at McCall Behavioral Health Network, said one of their missions is to provide early intervention for children and adolescents.

As a marriage-family therapist, she shared some of the struggles kids are dealing with.

"A tremendous amount of anxiety, there's loneliness, there's a sense of hopelessness,” Pendola said.

She said the younger generation is facing struggles other generations haven’t like the COVID-19 pandemic and social media pressures, but believes their center will reach the troubled youth.

"All of the curriculum we're using, all the evidence-based services that we utilize are really directed completely to their developmental stage and also speak to them on a personal level,” Pendola said.

The center will provide services to all who need them, regardless of their insurance coverage.

Coutant Skinner said it was very important to her to make sure they could serve as many people as possible.

“We take people with every kind of health insurance, but we also recognize that sometimes the insurance card in your wallet can actually be a barrier to getting these services," Coutant Skinner said.

"People are worried about their deductible, their copay or maybe they don’t have insurance and so we’re committed to making sure every patient is seen regardless of their ability to pay,” she continued.

Congresswoman Jahana Hayes, a Waterbury native, said the primary care center and all its services will fill a huge void in the city.

“I know so many families that can benefit from not only the direct services, but the support for families and all of those things, so I’m really excited that McCall decided to open this type of center right here in Waterbury," Hayes said.

Senator Richard Blumenthal, who was also present at the event, said young people are in a mental health crisis and a center like this one will help greatly.

“They need and deserve this kind of hand up for them, it's not a hand out, it's a hand up in healthcare,” Blumenthal said.