In July 2021, our organization made the difficult decision to stop providing the Sunstone Youth Residential Treatment program located on our Lake Burien campus.
Our greatest priority is the safety of our patients and employees. For the last several years, the Sunstone staff have focused relentlessly on improving quality of care, safety and regulatory compliance in order to deliver the best possible services to our patients and their families. Unfortunately, recent staffing shortages across our Behavioral Health Network have hampered our ability to continue our progress and we have made the difficult decision to stop providing this program while we redesign our services.
Another contributing factor is the sustainability of the program. Over the history of Sunstone, the cost to provide safe and high-quality clinical care has outpaced the rate of reimbursement. As a result, the organization has been subsidizing the cost of care, which impacts other critical treatment programs.
We will resume delivering services at the Lake Burien campus as soon as possible, though we expect the program to look different. We are exploring several options that will give us the ability to care for even more patients with a broader array of services. In the meantime, Navos, a member of the MultiCare Behavioral Health Network remains committed to doing all that we can to help kids ages 12 to 18 — as well as anyone else who needs behavioral health care. Thanks to donor contributions, MultiCare Behavioral Health Network offers a robust continuum of mental health programs and services for children, youth and families.
If you have any questions, please contact Alice Braverman at 206-933-7032.
