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SPARTANBURG AREA MENTAL HEALTH CENTER

Spartanburg Area Mental Health Center is a facility of the S. C. Department of Mental Health, supported by local, county, state and federal funds. The Board of Trustees, appointed by the Governor of South Carolina, comprises of representative from the three counties served: Cherokee, Spartanburg and Union. Our mission is to support the recovery of people with mental illnesses. We believe that with the right treatment and support, recovery is possible.

Our Story

SAMHC officially opened on December 8, 1947, when Probate Judge William Davenport and the local Mental Hygiene Association secured $20,000 in funding to open a three-room clinic, the philosophy of which was geared towards early detection and treatment as preventive measures. Early efforts were spent on those considered most treatable or those who were not considered seriously disturbed. When grants became available to expand the Clinic into a comprehensive community mental health center, a day, evening, and night hospital program, and the first vocational rehabilitation evaluation facility in the state were added to its services.

The Clinic continued to grow until DMH downsizing began in the mid 1970‟s and 80‟s, at which time SAMHC needed to change its programming to stay in-line with available resources. Community support, boarding home programs, and Toward Local Care programs replaced inpatient programs for clients who had lived for years in the state hospital system. 

OUR MISSION STATEMENT:

To support the recovery of people with mental illnesses

SAMHC PRIORITIES:

The Spartanburg Area Mental Health gives priority to adults, children, and their families affected by serious mental illnesses and significant emotional disorders. We are committed to eliminating stigma and promoting the philosophy of recovery, to achieving our goals in collaboration with all stakeholders, and to assuring the highest quality of culturally competent services possible.

SAMHC VALUES:

Respect for the Individual

Each person who receives our services will be treated with respect and dignity, and will be a partner in achieving recovery. We commit ourselves to services that:

  • honor the rights, wishes and needs of each individual;
  • promote each individual's quality of life;
  • focus on each individual's strengths in the context of his or her own culture;
  • foster independence and recovery;
  • demonstrate the value of family inclusion and the benefits of strong family support.

Support for Local Care

We believe that people are best served in or near their own homes or the community of their choice. We commit to the availability of a full and flexible array of coordinated services in every community across the state, and to services that are provided in a healthy environment. We believe in services that build upon critical local supports: family, friends, faith communities, healthcare providers, and other community services that offer employment, learning, leisure pursuits, and other human or clinical supports.

Commitment to Quality

We will be a center worthy of the highest level of public trust. We will provide treatment environments that are safe and therapeutic, and work environments that inspire and promote innovation and creativity. We will hire, train, support and retain staff who are culturally and linguistically competent, who are committed to the recovery philosophy, and who value continuous learning and research. We will provide services efficiently and effectively, and will strive always to provide interventions that are scientifically proven to support recovery.

Dedication to improved public awareness and knowledge

We believe that people with mental illnesses, trauma victims, and others who experience severe emotional distress, are often the object of misunderstanding and stigmatizing attitudes. Therefore, we will build formal partnerships with the state's educational leadership and institutions, including both K-12 and institutions of higher learning, to enhance curriculum content on mental health. We will work with employers, sister agencies, and public media to combat prejudice born of ignorance about mental illnesses. In addition, we will expect our own staff to be leaders in the anti-stigma campaign.