Metro Psych Facility is a private psychiatric hospital owned and operated by Metro Psychiatry

Incorporated. It is the actualization of a dream of a group of psychiatrists to be able to provide alternative

care for individuals needing psychiatric treatment and rehabilitation. Even before Metro Psychiatry Inc.
was formally registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission in February 24, 1999, majority of
its Board of Directors, being experts in the field of psychiatry, have been involved in advocacy and
provision of mental health services as a group and as individuals. Most of the members of the Board of
Directors worked and some are still connected with the National Center for Mental Health in
Mandaluyong. We have seen how psychiatric patients are treated in the said government facility and
rejected by their own families and the society. The said patients are regarded as nuisance, burden and
some families even wished them dead. This maybe because psychiatric patients at the height of their
symptoms are distressing and some of them become physically violent. When Metro Psych Facility was
created, we made sure that the practices that we did not like in the government psychiatric hospital will
not happen in our facility. The physical set up of the facility was designed attractively and spaciously so
that patients will not feel that they are being punished and imprisoned.
The work forces were screened carefully on their views on mental illness and we made sure that all of
them had no history of working in any psychiatric hospital. We patiently trained them so that what we
envisioned was followed strictly. We wanted our patients to feel secure and make our facility a refuge
where they can stay in times of crises brought about by pressures from work and family. We instill to our
staff the values of honesty, loyalty, respect and love for their family. We want our patients to be treated
properly and view their admission at the facility as a positive experience where they can feel relief of their
symptoms. We believe that psychiatric patients are still capable of leading a normal life only if their
psychiatric symptoms are controlled. We envision a facility that provides activities to slowly integrate them
back to their family and society in general. We also involve their families in the treatment process for them
to fully understand their patient. Families should be educated on the nature of the psychiatric illness of
their loved ones so that they are ready to identify and deal with future relapses, as this is inevitable.
We initially catered to both psychiatric and substance abuse patients, but the set-up was not helping
either type of patients. The substance abusers made-fun of the psychiatric patients and at the same time
they were so bored as the program being implemented is for the psychiatric patients only.
A review of some epidemiological studies from the US revealed that 25 to 50 percent of newly admitted
psychiatric patients have concomitant drug and/or alcohol abuse problems (Simon et al). Similarly, in New
York State, the Commission on Quality Care for the Mentally Disabled found that 50 percent of the
patients admitted for psychiatric care had alcohol or drug abuse that required treatment. In another review
of 100 clients in a psychiatric out-patient services in New York State who have received extensive
psychiatric care, and who were known substance abusers revealed that 61 of the clients had never
received substance abuse treatment. Many of these clients accepted the lack of availability of substance
abuse services, and kept their substance abuse problems to themselves.
Initial assessment showed that statistics at Metro Psych Facility would corroborate such findings. A review
of 270 admissions from May 1999 to December 2000, 78 (29%) had concomitant drug and/or alcohol
abuse problems. Many of them have been discharged improved of psychiatric symptoms but without the
benefit of intervention for their drug and alcohol problems.

Encouraged by this response and inspired by an apparent need for a diversification of the services it
provides, a sister company was established to put up a drug rehabilitation center in its second floor
Roads and Bridges to Recovery. A vision for both companies was established:
Metro Psych Facility and Roads and Bridges to Recovery Drug Treatment and Rehabilitation center shall
be a leader in setting the standard in the provision of quality mental health services in the country. We
shall provide:
1.

Services that fully understand and adequately respond to the biopsychosocial needs of the
clients, family, and community.

2.

Training activities and programs for health workers, clients, family and community.

3.

An environment conducive to relevant research activities and mental health advocacy