Brownell Center rebrands as Liberty Resources Integrated Health Care

SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Liberty Resources says its Brownell Center is now part of Liberty Resources Integrated Health Care and will operate under that name.

The agency is citing its “expansion of primary care services” for the rebrand and name change.

Liberty Resources is a human-services agency headquartered at 1045 James St. in Syracuse. The Brownell Center has focused on behavioral-health care.

The rebranding and name change will not affect patients or patient care, Liberty Resources said in a news release.

Liberty Resources Integrated Health Care provides behavioral-health counseling and medication management for children, adolescents, and adults along with primary care for adults.

“The newly rebranded Liberty Resources Integrated Health Care clearly reflects the affiliation with our parent agency and the wide array of human services Liberty Resources provides the Central New York community,” Kim Langbart, VP of Liberty Resources Integrated Clinic Services, said in the release. Langbart has overseen the integration project.

Liberty Resources provides behavioral health-care services to patients in Syracuse and surrounding communities. Liberty Resources Integrated Health Care administers behavioral health and primary care in collaboration with therapists, psychiatrists, doctors, family-nurse practitioners, nutritionists, and support services.

Over the past 10 years, Liberty Resources’ Brownell Center has expanded capacity from serving about 300 clients to more than 1,500 annually.

It’s named for retired Onondaga County Mental Health Commissioner David Brownell.

Describing itself as the “largest provider” of outpatient mental-health services in the region, Liberty Resources operates satellite clinics in 12 Syracuse city schools, along with clinics in Fulton, Oneida, and Rochester.

Expanding capacity

Liberty Resources Integrated Health Care in 2017 is projected to serve more than 1,700 adults, children, and families in the Syracuse community with mental-health diagnoses and substance-use disorder, the agency said.

A federal SAMHSA grant has allowed Liberty Resources to expand capacity and access to primary-care services. It also has been able to increase early identification and intervention of chronic-health conditions; promote health education and prevention; and “ultimately” improve the overall health of children and adults with mental illnesses.

SAMHSA is short for Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The Rockville, Maryland–based organization is a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

As Liberty Resources incorporates primary-care services into the behavioral-health setting, the practice will increase patient capacity.

The agency plans to renovate nearly 6,000 square feet to accommodate the growth with eight new primary-care exam rooms and expanded behavioral health and substance-use disorder services.

Incorporating primary-care services into the behavioral-health setting should “ultimately” result in “improved overall health status of the clients served,” Liberty Resources contends.

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com