Visiting EastPointe Hospital
Having visitors at EastPointe is important for many of our patients. It is a way to maintain a connection with friends and family. It also reassures them of the patient’s health and safety. Visitation rules in a psychiatric hospital differ from those in a medical hospital for therapeutic reasons. Visiting hours are limited, so patients may focus on their treatment. Limiting visiting hours also helps to maintain safety and structure in the hospital units.
To schedule a visit with a patient, family members and friends must call EastPointe’s main phone number at (251) 378-6500 at least 24 hours before they would like to visit. They should be prepared to provide the patient’s medical record number during the call.
Visiting hours:
- 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. for 30 minutes on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, or Friday
- Children under 12 years of age are not permitted to visit
Visits are limited to three visitors per patient unless approval has been granted for more visitors to have a family meeting or therapy session. Visitors should leave purses in their vehicles. No food or drink may be brought to patients during visits or allowed to be taken onto the unit.
Visitor Information, Lodging & Transportation
Lodging in the Mobile Bay region
Family members and friends visiting patients at EastPointe Hospital have numerous options for overnight lodging in Mobile or Baldwin counties. EastPointe does not recommend any specific hotels or motels in the Mobile Bay region; however, there are many options based on specific budgets, lengths of stay, number of guests and other details.
Public and private transportation
Mobile is served by The Wave Transit System, offering bus service throughout the city. The Wave also operates Moda!, a free bus route in downtown Mobile.
Baldwin Rural Area Transportation System (BRATS) operates BayLinc, a daily commuter bus connecting Baldwin and Mobile counties. Bayside Taxi provides transportation for the Eastern Shore of Mobile Bay.
Patient Rights & Notices
AltaPointe Adult Outpatient, Inpatient & Residential
At AltaPointe Health, our goal is to make sure patients receive the quality mental healthcare they need. There should be trust and respect between the patient and those who give that care in order for this to happen. This document will help patients understand what to expect from AltaPointe and what AltaPointe may expect from them.
No patient shall be refused services based upon their inability to pay.
John Hayes, CRNP
John Hayes, CRNP, joined AltaPointe Health in 2007. Hayes earned a bachelor’s degree in nursing and a master’s degree in family mental health from the University of South Alabama. He has worked across AltaPointe’s continuum of care including the following positions: director of nursing for BayPointe Children’s Hospital, adult outpatient services, and AltaPointe’s adult acute care psychiatric facility EastPointe. Hayes is a member of the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).
Patient Rights
Patient Rights – AltaPointe Adult Outpatient, Inpatient & Residential
At AltaPointe Health, our goal is to make sure patients receive the quality mental healthcare they need. There should be trust and respect between the patient and those who give that care in order for this to happen. This document will help patients understand what to expect from AltaPointe and what AltaPointe may expect from them.
No patient shall be refused services based upon their inability to pay.
When you are a patient at AltaPointe
Facts about your care
Facts about your medicine
Making decisions about your care
Getting help from others
You have duties too.
Contacts that can assist with questions about your rights
When you are a patient at AltaPointe you have the right to:
- Be treated with respect, dignity and privacy.
- Be treated in a safe and humane place.
- Know the facts about your care, which has been designed just for you.
- Know the facts about your medicine.
- Be told where to get help if you have pain or other medical problems.
- Get help from others.
- Give your written consent for treatment.
Facts about your care. You have the right to be told:
- What your illness is and what the doctor thinks is the best way to treat it.
- How long your treatment will last.
- The cost of your treatment, what part your insurance will pay, and if there are any limits on your treatment.
- The rules about behavior in the program.
Facts about your medicine. You have the right to:
- Take medicine only if ordered by a doctor.
- Be told about your medicine, including information about any side effects that you may expect and how the medicine will help you.
- Refuse to take any medicine, unless your care and treatment has been ordered by the court.
Making decisions about your care. You have the right to:
- Have a treatment plan set up for your needs and to have it reviewed on a regular basis.
- Help plan your treatment and have your family participate, if you want.
- Get your treatment in the place that is the least restrictive for you.
- Refuse any treatment unless it has been ordered by a court.
Getting help from others. You have the right to:
- Get a second opinion, at your expense.
- File a complaint and get an answer to your complaint about services or treatment.
- Talk to an attorney.
- Have contact with the court system.
- Talk to a pastor or minister and to worship in the faith of your choice.
- Access protective services.
- Pray, if you want to.
- Get proper, healthy meals.
- Have your personal belongings and clothing to wear.
- Have visitors, to send or get mail and phone calls in private.
- Not be put into isolation or restrained or put on drugs unless this is a part of your treatment.
- Refuse to do any work that would financially benefit AltaPointe Health.
- Get a free public education if you are of school age.
- See a doctor or dentist and get the health care you need (at your own expense).
- Formulate or have your advanced directive honored.
You have duties too. You should:
- Respect other people.
- Talk to our staff.
- Not touch other people in the wrong way.
- Not run away.
- Not break things.
- Take your medicine.
- Follow the rules.
- Join in activities.
- Do your chores.
- Not hurt other people or fight.
Contacts that can assist with questions about your rights
If you feel that any of your rights have been violated or if you want further information, you may contact the following:
Alabama Department of Mental Health Advocacy Office
(800) 367-0955
Alabama Department of Human Resources
(251) 450-1800
Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program
(800) 826-1675
AltaPointe Health Consumer Needs Department
(251) 450-4303
You may contact the Joint Commission’s Office of Quality Monitoring to report any concerns or register complaints about AltaPointe Health either by calling (800) 994-6610 or e-mailing complaint@jointcommission.org.
You may also call Elder Care at Alabama Department of Public Health in Montgomery/Division of Health Care Facilities to report a complaint and/or to ask questions about your advance directive at (800) 356-9596, Monday – Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Visiting EastPointe Hospital
Having visitors at EastPointe is important for many of our patients. It is a way to maintain connection with friends and family. It also reassures them of the patient’s health and safety. Visitation rules in a psychiatric hospital are different from those in a medical hospital for therapeutic reasons. Visiting hours are limited so patients may focus on their treatment. Limiting visiting hours also helps to maintain safety and structure on the hospital units.
Family members and friends may call EastPointe’s main phone number at (251) 378-6500 to schedule a visit and should be prepared to provide the patient’s medical record number during the call.
Visiting hours:
- 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. for 30 minutes
- Children under 12 years of age are not permitted to visit
Visits are limited to three visitors per patient unless approval has been granted for more visitors in order to have a family meeting or therapy session. Visitors should leave purses in their vehicles. Food may be brought to patients for their consumption during the visit. No food or snacks brought from outside the hospital may be taken onto the unit.
Admission & Services
Admission protocol
EastPointe is a private psychiatric hospital that also operates involuntary and residential units. Referrals for admission are not required and many patients are self-referred. However, we do accept referrals from a variety of settings including other hospitals and hospital emergency departments, and outpatient settings, such as from therapists or physicians in private practice.
Patients admitted voluntarily will have called AltaPointe’s access-to-care call center that conducts assessments over the telephone and manages admissions and referrals. EastPointe accepts all major insurance carriers and Medicare. Though based in the Mobile Bay region of Alabama, our patients may reside in other cities, counties, and states. The average length of stay on this unit is seven to nine days.
Patients involuntarily admitted are evaluated by our professional staff members who make recommendations to the probate courts of Mobile, Baldwin or Washington counties in south Alabama regarding the patient’s need for commitment or treatment in a less restrictive setting. The average length of stay on this unit is 14 to 20 days.
After admission
Each patient completes a psychiatric diagnostic evaluation and receives 24-hour clinical care. The goal is for each patient to return home or to the least restrictive level of care as quickly as possible and to follow a comprehensive aftercare plan upon discharge.
EastPointe’s treatment team comprises patients, psychiatrists, nurses, therapists, recreational therapists, psychiatric residents, certified nursing assistants and behavioral staff. Our approach to care includes family members or other supportive individuals. Family therapy and meetings with physicians are available at the request of the patient, family member or treatment team.
EastPointe professionals believe strongly in care coordination, which is why we consult primary care physicians, as indicated. Psychiatrists assess and evaluate each patient daily, which includes managing each patient’s medications. Individual, group and recreational therapies help patients gain insight into their illnesses.
The hospital offers secure outdoor areas where patients may spend leisure time or where therapy sessions are sometimes held. All patient rooms are semi-private. AltaPointe’s attractive and high-tech EastPointe Hospital erases institutional stereotypes typically related to psychiatric facilities. Calming colors and patterns, engaging artwork and aesthetically appealing furnishings work together to promote a non-institutional feeling throughout the building.
Discharge planning
Planning for discharge begins early in the treatment process. From the time of admission and after each interaction, our healthcare professionals work with the patient to ensure support services are in place prior to discharge. This may include medication monitoring, therapy, and substance use treatment.
Patients are referred for follow-up to their referring provider at discharge, or they may be referred to another private provider.
Who We Are
EastPointe Hospital opened its doors as the only free-standing adult psychiatric hospital in the Mobile Bay region in July 2012. It offers the highest level of behavioral supports to patients experiencing mental distress. We care for adults 19 years of age or older who are in psychiatric crisis and require 24-hour support and supervision. We offer evaluation and treatment to individuals who may be at risk to themselves or others or who may be unable to care for themselves because of their psychiatric symptoms. EastPointe is licensed by the Alabama Department of Public Health.
Operated by AltaPointe Health, EastPointe’s experienced healthcare professionals provide treatment that focuses on stabilizing psychiatric symptoms, preventing psychiatric commitment and ultimately improving quality of life. Our program cares for patients who have been diagnosed with illnesses such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, depression and anxiety.
History
The building in which Eastpointe operates was constructed in 1986 by Bradford Healthcare facility. The Alabama Department of Mental Health (ADMH) purchased it many years later. ADMH operated the Searcy State Hospital’s assessment center in the early 90s. It was known as the Emmett Poundstone Mental Health Facility at that time. Later, it became home to the Albert P. Brewer Developmental Center when the facility of that same name moved there from Mobile in the late 90s. ADMH vacated the building in 2004. The Shoulder, an alcohol and drug rehabilitation organization used a portion of the building from 2005 to 2012.
Maridith Hollis, MD
Maridith Hollis, M.D., has joined AltaPointe Health as an inpatient psychiatrist at Eastpointe Hospital. She earned a bachelor’s degree from Abilene Christian University in Abilene, TX with honors in history and psychology. She attended and completed medical school and residency training in psychiatry at University of South Alabama. During residency, Dr. Hollis served as co-chief resident and was honored with the PRITE award for the highest score on the annual residency psychiatry exam. She is board certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in adult psychiatry. In addition to her role at AltaPointe, she will also serve as adjunct faculty at University of South Alabama College of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry. Her major psychiatric interests include treatment of psychotic and bipolar disorders, advocating for integrated care, and overcoming healthcare inequalities.
James LePage, DO
James LePage, DO, earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. He attended medical school at the Alabama College of Osteopathic Medicine where he was founder of the Neurology/Psychiatry Student Interest Group and served as President of the national Psychiatry Student Interest Group Network. He completed his residency training in Psychiatry and fellowship in Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of South Alabama. During his residency, he served as the American Psychiatric Association Area 5 Resident-Fellow Member Representative and Chair of the Assembly Council of Resident-Fellow Members. He has a special interest in childhood trauma.
Jeanette Mortara, CRNP
Jeanette Mortara, CRNP, has more than 20 years of psychiatric nursing experience and four years’ experience as a certified psychiatric nurse practitioner. Mortara joined AltaPointe Health in April 2014. She was previously employed at Baldwin County Mental Health Center. Mortara earned a bachelor’s and master’s in nursing from the University of South Alabama College of Nursing.
She serves as the AltaPointe Health psychiatric nurse practitioner for Foley and surrounding area, provides telehealth for Sylacauga adult outpatient clinics and cares for patients of Eastpointe Hospital.
Mortara is a board certified by the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC) mental health nurse and family psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner. She is an active member and attends conferences of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) and Neuroscience Education Institute (NEI). Mortara is involved in local, state and national policy-making advocating nurse practitioner role and standards of care.
