 Tuesday, December 16, 2025 | | |
| | | | | BY MEG WINGERTER Denver Health is opening a new unit this week for people who need hospital-level care for both a physical problem and a mental illness. A general hospital floor isn't set up for people who might want to harm themselves or others, so patients who are in psychiatric crisis end up stuck in their rooms with a staff member watching them. On the other hand, mental health units aren't set up for all of the equipment needed to monitor vital signs, and the nurses aren’t necessarily experienced in handling physical health problems. The sales tax Denver voters approved last year is partially funding the combined unit, which is going in a previously idled area. | | | | The unit is the first of its kind in Colorado, serving people who have mental health symptoms severe enough to warrant psychiatric hospitalization, but also have an unstable physical condition requiring hospital care. | | | | | The Nordic countries are no strangers to the long, dark winter. | | | | | Amanda Killam’s partner died by suicide at 42. She knew about his history of health problems, including a stroke in his 20s and two kidney transplants, but he never talked about the extent of his mental suffering. | | | | | The national birth rate has largely been on a downward trajectory since 2007. | | | | | Republicans and Democrats never engaged in meaningful or high-level negotiations on a solution. | | | | | The state has higher rates of flu hospitalizations, emergency room visits and positive tests than it did at this time last year. | | | |
