| Providence Behavioral Health Hospital | |
| Org/Group: | Trinity Health Of New England |
| Map Type: | USA Massachusetts |
| Location: | 1233 Main St, Holyoke |
| State: | Massachusetts |
| Country: | US |
| Coordinates: | 42.1659°N -72.6339°W |
| Healthcare: | Private |
| Funding: | Non-profit |
| Type: | Community, Behavioral and Substance Abuse |
| Founded: | November 7, 1873 (founded) December 17, 1892 (charter) |
Providence Behavioral Health Hospital, formerly known as Providence Hospital, is a faith-based non-profit behavioral health and substance abuse medical center located in Holyoke, Massachusetts, providing non-emergency services. Founded in 1873 by the Sisters of Providence of Holyoke, Providence was originally the first full-service medical hospital in Holyoke, continuing until 1996 when it was converted to a psychiatric and behavioral health facility.[1] In February 2020 the hospital announced it would cease all inpatient psychiatric services, citing a shortage of psychiatrists, effective June 30, 2020. The hospital will continue to maintain substance use disorder services as well as a methadone clinic.[2]
The hospital's adjacent Catherine Horan Medical Building also houses medical practices,[3] as well as the Holyoke branch of the Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner.
The hospital was first founded by the Sisters of Providence on November 7, 1873, in a small dwelling in South Hadley Falls to aid the sick and needy.[4] In 1894 the Sisters opened a modern medical hospital in Holyoke on the corners of Dwight and Elm Streets, which also featured their residence on the top floor; the facility would serve more than 200,000 patients in its 64 years of use.[1]
The hospital's facility in downtown closed in June 1958 following the opening of its current facility in the month prior.[5] The former facility was razed in the following year and the land leased to the city by the Diocese for additional downtown parking.[6] The hospital would maintain a full emergency staff with medical specialists, surgeons, and an intensive care unit until 1996, when it closed and began transitioning into a behavioral care facility.[1] [7]