Admissions Without Barriers: A Client-First Approach to Behavioral Health Treatment
In behavioral health, we talk a lot about being client-centered, but that commitment must start at the very first touchpoint: admissions. Too often, admissions departments look for the “ideal” client. The right diagnosis, acuity, or insurance. A perfect fit on paper for the treatment center. But people don’t come to us because they are ideal. They come to us because they need help. Sanford Behavioral Health and Sr. Director of Strategic Development Rebecca Wolfslau (Wolfi) are committed to shifting the admissions mindset from criteria-first to client-first. We sat down with Wolfi to ask her a few questions about Sanford’s admissions process and her mission to change access to behavioral health care.
Client-First Admissions
SBH: How does client-first differ from criteria-first admissions?
Wolfi:Â With a client-first admissions process, we assess how we can help, not why we can’t. We focus on clinical fit, safety, and compassion, but not perfection. When someone reaches out for help, that moment is fragile. It takes courage to call. It takes vulnerability to ask questions. And it takes trust to say, “I need support.” The job of the admissions department is to honor that trust by:
- Showing empathy
- Creating pathways, not barriers
- Being the point of connection, not the checkpoint.
Because the truth is simple: we take a client because they need help, not because they are the “ideal.” They are human beings deserving of care. Here’s to reshaping admissions in behavioral health, one client-centered admission at a time!
SBH: Talk about EZ Admissions, please.
Wolfi: At Sanford, we have easy admissions, easy approvals, and easy clearances. The main premise is that an individual can do most of the admissions process in one phone call. Clients get help much faster (often on the same day), which definitely sets us apart. With eating disorder treatment, the average days to admission can be upwards of 7 to 14 days in most treatment centers. The average days to admission in mental health treatment can be 3 to 5 days, and 3 to 7 days in substance use treatment. So, we have expedited the required steps. We need demographic information, benefit verification, an assessment, clearance for the assessment, cost communication, and then getting the clients scheduled.
SBH: How can you do all that in one phone call?
Wolfi: First, EZ Admissions means that Sanford staff picks up the phone 24/7. In most treatment centers, the admissions team is only there during the day. After they leave, calls get kicked to a call center, and call centers can’t bring in admissions. Admission specialists or Sanford staff answer phones and work one-on-one with our clients at all times of day or night. What matters most is that EZ Admissions prioritizes clients and referral sources. It is about them and when they need support. It’s not about us and when we’re available to take the admissions call. We are set up to support them RIGHT NOW.
EZ Approvals happen in two different ways. First, we can complete an assessment during the initial phone call (with eight easy questions). We can also complete clearance during that phone call. You only need extra clearance from our chief medical officer if there are certain yellow-light criteria, such as a recent seizure or medical comorbidities. We can approve on the spot within the assessment without ever having to send out for extra clearance. We skip the approval stage as long as you meet green-light criteria. This process is rare in behavioral health. It requires training. At Sanford, a licensed professional counselor oversees the department to ensure that clients are medically safe when they enter a program.
SBH: We take walk-ins. What is that process?
Wolfi: If a client, for whatever reason, cannot complete an assessment before they come to our doors, they can walk in to Sanford Behavioral Health. Because our process is so easy, we can clear an individual for admission when they come through the doors. The clearance process is also simplified so we can pull insurance verifications while we’re on the phone or in person with the client. We can really walk the walk and talk the talk on walk-in admissions, too. Our process is set up to accept as many clients as possible who need help.
SBH: At Sanford, we have trusted referral partners. How does admissions work when a client is referred?
Wolfi: Instead of completing an assessment with a client who comes to us from a direct referral, we clear them clinically and medically from the referral packet. So we never have to get on the phone with the client and make them do another assessment. Sometimes we don’t even have to talk to the client until they arrive at Sanford. For example, if a client is inpatient, we can clear them with the referral packet. This happens often with our payor partners.
The referral packets arrive via fax or e-mail. We do all clearance from that packet, then call to schedule the client. Often, those packets also include insurance information, so we use that to run the benefits, and then we have cost and clearance before we even call them. When clients come from therapy practices, they usually send their own biopsychosocial assessment or therapy notes. Simply put, we set up our clearances with the client and referral source in mind.
Speed is often of the essence, and our referral partners need to know their clients will not be subjected to multiple assessments. We start building therapeutic rapport so we can discuss these difficult topics face to face. Because we use a campus concept, we treat the whole person, reducing the trauma of recounting vulnerable information to multiple individuals our clients have never met across different program areas.
SBH: Can an individual come to Sanford Behavioral Health instead of a hospital? When is inpatient required?
An individual may feel they need to go to the hospital, but what they really need is 24/7 care. That’s why Sanford is the perfect place to start. Sometimes inpatient care is needed. That being said, if someone is in acute crisis, the EZ admissions, clearance, and approval process makes for a seamless transition to care. Again, we can complete everything in the first phone call, which then gets them into the program, sometimes same day, to meet the needs of that acute crisis.
SBH: Anything else you’d like to say?
Wolfi: Yes. At Sanford, we make the client and the referral source the most important part of our admissions process. These referral sources work hard to get their clients the care they need. They are doing incredible work. Our process meets the client when they’re ready for treatment. Motivation can be a narrow window of opportunity. So, when the client is ready for treatment, they answer eight simple questions. We clear them in one phone call, and the client gets the care they need when they need it, not when we’re ready to accept them.
Thanks, Wolfi!
If you or a loved one is living with a mental health condition, substance use disorder, or eating disorder, we’re here to help. Click the link below to connect with an admissions specialist anytime. With Sanford’s 24/7 EZ Admissions, you’ll speak with a real person, receive a free assessment, and begin treatment right away. Walk-ins are welcome.
