Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS)

Health System with 5 hospitals across 1 state

Health System Overview

Health SystemCommonwealth of Virginia's Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS)
Total Hospitals5
Commercial/Acute Hospitals1
Total Beds452
Commercial/Acute Beds10
HeadquartersCatawba, VA
Websitedbhds.virginia.gov

Hospitals by Type

Psychiatric
4 hospitals
80% of health system
Acute Care Hospital
1 hospitals
20% of health system

Teaching Status

40%
Teaching
Teaching Hospitals: 2
Non-Teaching Hospitals: 3
Teaching hospitals serve as educational institutions for medical professionals while providing patient care.

Hospital Locations

Hospitals in this Health System

HospitalTypeBedsTeachingRecently Joined
Hiram W. Davis Medical CenterAcute Care Hospital 10NoNo
Northern Virginia Mental Health InstitutePsychiatric129YesNo
Southern Virginia Mental Health InstitutePsychiatric 72NoNo
Southwestern Virginia Mental Health InstitutePsychiatric109NoNo
Catawba HospitalPsychiatric132YesNo

Recent News

Jun 12, 2025
The Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) is announcing an opportunity for public comment on proposed variances to the Human Rights Regulations for its Central State Hospital (CSH). This notice, posted on the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall, details an application for variances submitted to the State Human Rights Committee (SHRC). The regulations in question aim to ensure and protect the legal and human rights of individuals receiving services from DBHDS-operated, licensed, or funded providers. The proposed variances for CSH are itemized according to four distinct policies. These variances include allowing routine pat-downs of fully clothed non-forensic individuals in secure programs under specific circumstances, permitting non-forensic patients in maximum security to file a final appeal directly to the CSH Maximum Security Appeals Committee if not satisfied with the director's response to a complaint, and allowing non-forensic patients to purchase items from a canteen and external providers while not permitting them to have money on their person within the secure perimeter. The SHRC will consider public comments before making a decision to defer, disapprove, modify, or approve each variance application for a specific time period.
May 21, 2025
The Joint Commission on Health Care (JCHC) discussed the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services' (DBHDS) plans for transitioning services from state hospitals, particularly Central State Hospital. The plans include enhancing therapeutic laboratory, dental, and pharmacy services. DBHDS aims to minimize layoffs during this transition by matching staff with available positions at nearby facilities and has implemented retention bonuses. A state and community consensus planning team is developing a comprehensive plan for the closure of a state hospital, which is expected to be presented by November 1, 2025. This plan involves stakeholder input and aims for transparency.
May 21, 2025
The Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) is seeking a Substance Use Disorder (SUD) Data Analyst for its Central Office. This position is tasked with managing data and analytics between DBHDS and its stakeholders to support analysis, reporting, and project management for current and future projects related to the continuum of care for individuals with substance use disorder. The role, located within the Office of Research and Evaluation, provides analytical support to the Office of Substance Use Services and directly assists multiple internal and external stakeholders, including the Office of Child and Family Services. A key responsibility involves coordinating the agency's participation in Virginia's Substance Use Disorder Abatement dashboard. The duties include cleaning, coding, and analyzing program data using statistical methods, developing standardized data metrics for SUD projects, creating and disseminating surveys, visualizing data through charts and graphs, preparing reports and presentations, and serving as the primary agency representative for relevant committees, such as the SUDA platform sponsored by the Opioid Abatement Authority.
May 08, 2025
The Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) is undertaking significant data modernization efforts. These initiatives include the development of an Enterprise Data Warehouse and a focus on Data Governance projects. Updates on these projects, specifically the transition of Community Services Boards (CSBs) to the new Enterprise Data Warehouse, were planned to be presented. This includes outlining a new data taxonomy and aggregation methodology for DBHDS enterprise reporting and addressing questions regarding the sunset of the CCS3 system. These efforts aim to improve how data is managed, analyzed, and reported across the DBHDS system.
Apr 17, 2025
According to a Virginia Education Update from April 17, 2025, the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) is offering a no-cost opportunity for school divisions to train up to four staff members in the Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA) Train-the-Trainer course. This initiative is aimed at increasing the capacity within schools to identify and respond to mental health and substance use challenges among young people aged 12–18. Certified trainers who complete the course will be required to teach at least three YMHFA courses annually to maintain their certification. Two virtual training options were available, and school divisions were encouraged to complete an information form by May 2nd, 2025, to be eligible to sign up for these training courses.

Executive Leadership

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