San Diego County's largest mental health care hospital has launched a $4 million renovation.
Sharp Mesa Vista Hospital treats more than 1,300 young people each year. Its main building was constructed in the 1960s.
The makeover will allow Sharp to maximize space for patient care, and bring in some state-of-the-art safety enhancements.
Dr. Alisha Carpenter, who manages Mesa Vista’s child and adolescent services, said the makeover will also help create a comforting, home-like atmosphere.
“So that when somebody steps off the elevator, when they are so frightened and really in a state of crisis, that they’ll get that sense right as the doors open," she said.
Carpenter added that decorating with soothing colors and images of nature will be an important part of the healing environment.
“We know just that a window in a room for somebody who’s had a medical procedure has wonderful benefits," she explained, "and I think that that is obviously true, and maybe even more so, for people who are experiencing psychiatric illness.”
Mesa Vista is one of only three facilities in San Diego County that provides inpatient mental health care to children.
The hospital's renovation is expected to be completed by early 2018.
