News Releases

The Center for Health Affairs Welcomes New Member

Bluestone Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Hospital, a 12-bed hospital dedicated to children’s acute mental health needs, joins the membership.

The Center for Health Affairs — the leading advocate for Northeast Ohio hospitals for more than 100 years — is growing its membership with the recent addition of Bluestone Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Hospital.

“As we move into the second half of 2023, it’s an exciting time to welcome a new member that shares the core values and goals of The Center,” said The Center for Health Affair’s President and CEO Brian Lane. “With the addition of Bluestone, we continue to grow our membership base while reinforcing our commitment to value for our members and enhancing our status as a positive force in the healthcare community.”

“We believe that membership in The Center for Health Affairs is important to advancing our mission of meeting the current and emerging mental health needs of children and teens across our community,” said Bluestone Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Hospital Executive Director Pamela Budak, LISW-S. “As the only not-for-profit psychiatric hospital solely for youth in the state of Ohio, we are sincere in our efforts to advocate on behalf of the most vulnerable segment of our community, including young people with an Autism Spectrum Disorder. We welcome the opportunity to work in tandem with the membership of The Center to enhance our healthcare community.”

Bluestone Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Hospital fills a widening gap in services and addresses the shortage of beds dedicated to children’s acute mental health needs. Designed to create cutting-edge clinical care and positive experiences for youth in crisis, Bluestone is equipped with a wide range of safety features and supported by an equally impressive team of professionals. Understanding the importance of long-term success of the served youth, their multidisciplinary staff includes behavioral nursing, speech and language pathologists, occupational therapists, special education teachers, and board-certified child and adolescent psychiatrists.

"We are delighted to welcome Bluestone into our collaborative efforts to serve our community," said The Center for Health Affairs' Director of Member Programming Amy Terry. "They are an important addition to our membership and our programming, especially our activities related to behavioral and mental health. We are proud to support them in their work to increase the availability and accessibility of the mental health services for our local youth."

With the addition of Bluestone Child & Adolescent Psychiatric Hospital, The Center for Health Affairs serves 39 members across 10 counties in Northeast Ohio. Core programs include Community Health, Emergency Preparedness, Finance & Reimbursement, Opioid & Polysubstance Use, the Social Determinants of Health Innovation Hub, and Data & Volume Statistics.

Together with its subsidiaries, CHAMPS Group Purchasing and The Essentials Group, The Center continues the legacy of its founders, working collaboratively to increase the efficiency of healthcare delivery, providing insightful healthcare information to the public, and undertaking initiatives aimed at improving the health of the community.