Northwell Health affiliates with two nonprofits focused on mental health and addiction

The New Hyde Park-based Northwell Health announced Thursday that it has affiliated with two groups slated to run crisis stabilization centers on Long Island for mental and behavioral health patients.

Northwell, the state's largest health system, will collaborate with Central Nassau Guidance & Counseling Services and the Family Service League — nonprofits that focus on providing counseling, addiction prevention and treatment and other services for economically disadvantaged Long Islanders. The agreement will improve the process by which CN Guidance and the Family Service League get referred patients leaving Northwell hospitals, including two specialty behavioral health hospitals in Amityville and Glen Oaks, Queens, said CN Guidance CEO Jeffrey Friedman said.     

"What we're working towards is: I am getting out of the hospital Monday, and I have an appointment Tuesday morning at CN Guidance Services," Friedman said. "There's no opportunity for someone to fall through the cracks."

The Family Service League runs a 24-hour diagnostic, assessment and stabilization hub in Hauppauge; It also operates a crisis hotline and has the ability to dispatch a mobile response team. The Family Service League has about 20 locations total and assists about 50,000 people annually.

CN Guidance is slated to open a crisis stabilization center in Hicksville in 2025. The group has expanded to Suffolk County and treats about 34,000 patients Islandwide, Friedman said. 

Through the affiliation, the three groups can pool resources, coordinate and improve access to care, he added. Northwell employs about 2,800 mental and behavioral health professionals, and operates two hospitals that specialize in related services: South Oaks Hospital in Amityville and Zucker Hillside Hospital in Glen Oaks. 

"The need for behavioral health care on Long Island is enormous, with many people unable to access the right services at the right time," Dr. John Young, senior vice president and chair for Behavioral Health Services at Northwell, said in a statement. "Working together, Northwell, CN Guidance and FSL will now be able to better meet the escalating needs of our communities for mental health care and treatment for substance use disorders."

By Sarina Trangle

sarina.trangle@newsday.comSarinaTrangle

Sarina Trangle covers affordability and cost of living issues and other business topics. She previously worked as an editor and reporter at amNewYork.