For nearly 60 years, Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital—one of Mass General Brigham’s community hospitals—has been caring for patients and families faced with mental illness. Through a wide range of psychiatric services and programs that have grown and evolved over time, the Faulkner has been a beacon of hope for countless people and a leader in mental health treatment.

In fact, its affiliation with the field of psychiatry can be traced back even further, nearly 150 years ago, when the first mental health facility in the Boston area opened its doors thanks to a bequest from local businessman Seth Adams. When that facility outgrew its space, it found a new home at the Faulkner in 1966, with an agreement that the hospital would continue to provide these services per the terms of Adams’ will.

“We open cabinets and find pictures of people who did great things, and think, wow, there’s quite a history here,” says Carlos Fernandez-Robles, MD, chief, Division of Inpatient and Partial Hospital Psychiatric Services for the Faulkner.

A Culture of Collaboration

This legacy continues today, upheld by teams of expert clinicians—including psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, occupational therapists, and licensed alcohol and drug counselors—who care for patients through a combination of inpatient and outpatient programs.

Thanks to its innovative approach and ability to lead change, the Faulkner’s Department of Psychiatry has earned a reputation as a pioneer in the field.

“I think one of the things that sets us apart is our ability to collaboratively and proactively influence change,” says Andrew Hennessy, MBA, who oversees clinical operations for psychiatry across our academic medical centers. “Having that collaborative culture in place allows us to have some challenging conversations, all with a common goal toward advancing patient care.”

“We ask, ‘How do we creatively solve what is in front of us? How do we advance the care that we provide?’” adds Fernandez-Robles. “It’s about people stepping up, taking risks, not staying in their comfort zones—pushing the limits to get patients what they need. It’s about asking, ‘How do we get there?’”

Embracing Change Through Challenge

Hennessy notes that the Faulker’s 24-bed inpatient unit serves as a model for piloting initiatives that address system-level challenges like length of stay for inpatient psychiatric units and complex discharge barriers.

“This is a true testament to our multidisciplinary collaborative approach,” Hennessy says. “The goal is to test and refine approaches that can be scaled or adapted across similar units within the Mass General Brigham system.”

On a smaller scale, this also echoes the Faulkner’s hallmark collaborative approach to patient care.

“That’s at the heart of our mission: that every person is included, respected, and supported,” says Fernandez-Robles. “That translates through all the services we provide and the people who work here.”

Sometimes this means thinking outside the box. Recently, when a hospitalized patient couldn’t receive electroconvulsive therapy as originally planned because his heart couldn’t tolerate the treatment, clinicians raised the possibility of IV ketamine treatment—an alternative for patients struggling with medication-resistant depression. While the Faulkner administers ketamine in its outpatient clinics, the question became: How do we do it on an inpatient basis?

“Everybody was creatively putting together all their efforts to get this patient what he needed and eventually we were able to power through,” Fernandez-Robles says. “It’s an example of our philosophy and our spirit of ‘we can do anything together.’”

While this was a unique case, it highlighted the need for broader access. “Our goal is to build a consistent, safe treatment environment supported by robust training and protocols, so that similar patients can receive this as a standard part of our inpatient offerings,” says Hennessy.

The example also underscores how the Faulkner is at the epicenter of leading cutting-edge treatments, such as intravenous ketamine and, more recently, intranasal esketamine, a derivative of ketamine delivered through a nasal spray.

“We’ve seen this modeled across the system,” says Fernandez-Robles. “It’s such an important service and treatment for our patients.”

On a more holistic level, the Faulkner also provides dedicated resources to its inpatient unit, including psychiatric occupational therapy, music therapy, and a peer support specialist. Meanwhile, two Faulkner residents received grant funding to explore how nature artwork can impact wellness in inpatient psychiatric settings. As part of the study, the Faulkner partnered with a nationally recognized nature photographer to install nature-themed artwork in its inpatient unit.

A Story of Integration and a Commitment to Community

In 2001, the Faulkner joined with Brigham and Women’s Hospital to integrate their complementary psychiatric services, providing a continuum of inpatient, partial hospital, day treatment, outpatient, and consultative care for patients. With the more recent integration into the Mass General Brigham system, the Faulkner psychiatry team is seeing the benefits of a strong partnership.

“We’re really excited about this integration work,” says Hennessy. “The level and scale of the resources we’re able to partner with is so important and powerful.”

And while the Faulkner has grown in the breadth and scope of services, especially through integration, it has maintained a firm commitment to the local community.

“We have a very proud legacy of supporting our community,” says Hennessy.