Maryland Department of Health
Spring Grove

Admissions

Spring Grove Hospital Center provides comprehensive and quality health care to the consumers of mental health services in Maryland. Spring Grove Hospital Center will continuously provide mental health services consistent with recognized standards, the needs of the community and the capabilities of the organization. Service lines include adolescent psychiatric inpatient hospitalization; acute and subacute adult inpatient hospitalization; Inpatient psychiatric hospitalization; and Adult Assisted Living for those individuals who have been discharged from the Spring Grove.  The hospital serves persons who are 13 years of age and over:

1. Admission Office Description

The Admission Office is located in the Dayhoff Building and the regular@ admission hours are from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM, Monday through Friday. During this time, a full staff is on duty and all patients who meet the criteria for admission to this hospital may be admitted. Emergency patients will be admitted anytime of the day or night. The Admission Office staff consists of social workers, nursing staff, Health Information Services staff and on-call psychiatrists and somatic physicians. A physician is always responsible for admitting patients to the hospital. Regardless of the time of a patient's admission, he/she is evaluated by a psychiatrist, either his/her attending or a @ psychiatrist, within 24 hours. People who require psychiatric treatment in an inpatient setting can be admitted to Spring Grove Hospital Center in one of the following ways: voluntarily, involuntarily or court ordered.

2. Types of Commitment

A. Voluntary Admission

1. A person may be admitted voluntarily, to this facility, when she/he:

a. Is 18 years of age, or over, and,

b. Signs the application for Voluntary Admission Agreement;

2. The person requesting such admission must be capable of comprehending their request for commitment and of giving consent to treatment;

3. Patients who are admitted voluntarily can leave the hospital when the treatment team agrees, but no later than 72 hours after submitting a 72 hour notice in writing, unless the admission status has been changed to two physician's certificates, court order or if a detainer has been issued;

4. Upon admission to Spring Grove Hospital Center, the original Voluntary Admission Agreement form must accompany the patient;

5. If the individual is 65 years of age or older, and is being referred for admission to Spring Grove Hospital Center on a Voluntary Treatment Agreement, and a geriatric evaluation service team has determined that there is no available, less restrictive form of care or treatment that is adequate for the needs of the individual, the referral must then be reviewed by the Director of Geropsychiatric Services for MHA, prior to admission;

6. A legal guardian cannot sign a patient into a psychiatric hospital voluntarily.

B. Involuntary Admission

1. After a complete examination and evaluation is performed, a person may be admitted involuntarily to Spring Grove Hospital Center if they are 18 years of age or over, and meet the following criteria:

a. The individual has a mental disorder,

b. The individual needs inpatient care or treatment,

c. The individual presents a danger to his/her own life or safety or the life or safety of others,

d. The individual is unable or unwilling to be admitted voluntarily,

e. There is no available, less restrictive form of intervention that is consistent with the welfare and safety of the individual, and,

f. If the individual is 65 years old or older and is being referred for admission to Spring Grove Hospital Center, after a Geriatric Evaluation Service (GES) team has determined that there is no available, less restrictive form of care or treatment that is adequate for the needs of the individual. The Director of Geropsychiatric Services for MHA, must approve all geriatric patients for admission. The only exception to this is if an Emergency Petition is involved, GES clearance can be obtained on the next work day by the Spring Grove Hospital Center team social worker.

2. The physicians who sign the certification must be licensed to practice medicine in the State of Maryland or if a psychologist, must be licensed under the Health Occupations Article, Title 16, Annotated Code of Maryland, and listed in the National Register of Health Service Providers in Psychology.

3. The certificate forms must have been completed and signed within thirty days prior to the patient's admission and are based on an examination by the physician/psychologist within seven days.

a. One of the certifying doctors must write and sign a report to accompany the forms which should include a summary of the medical history of the individual, stating the individual's current symptoms and diagnosis, and giving an explanation of how, in the certifying physician's or psychologist's professional judgment, the individual meets the requirements for involuntary care or treatment .

b. The original certificate forms must accompany the original Application for Involuntary Admission. The Application for Involuntary Admission cannot be signed by the certifying physician/psychologist.

c. Previous certificates used to hospitalize a patient at another hospital are not valid for admission to Spring Grove Hospital Center. Certificates cannot be recycled!

C. Court Ordered Admission

1. A patient may be ordered by the court to be admitted to Spring Grove Hospital Center for several reasons including:

a. Pre-trial evaluations for competency and criminal responsibility;

b. Treatment after a finding of not criminally responsible or a finding of not competent and dangerous, or;

c. On a petition for revocation of conditional release and Hospital Warrant. Please note that the Hospital Warrant must be signed by a Judge, as well as the peace officer who serves the patient with the warrant. In addition, the following documents may accompany the patient:

i. Order for Hospital Warrant,

ii. Documentation to support the petition for revocation of conditional release, and, or,

iii. The original conditional release order;

2. Court ordered individuals do not require medical clearance;

3. Always obtain case number, charges, Judge's name, bail amount and physician who was involved with forensic prescreening on court ordered evaluated patients.

4. Court ordered patients 65 years and over are not screened by Geriatric Evaluation Service (GES);

5. If an individual is found NCR, or not competent and dangerous, that patient shall be committed to the State hospital which serves the patient's catchment area for treatment.

6. If an individual needs to be hospitalized for the purpose of a court ordered pretrial evaluation, that patient should go to the facility which serves the jurisdiction of the court.

For additional information or questions about our admission procedures, please contact our Admission Office at (410) 402-7565.

Public Notice

At Spring Grove Hospital Center, no person shall on the grounds of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, or disability be subject to discrimination in the provision of any care, service or admission.