24/7
Interventional Psychiatry
Services
Unique interventional psychiatry service allows New Braunfels ER & Hospital to perform psychiatric evaluations and treatments in the Emergency Department. Patients’ rights are respected while they are treated with dignity in an environment that takes away the stigma of asking for help. Our psychiatry partners are able to provide treatment to rapidly treat and stabilize patients in a crisis from suicidal ideation, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and postpartum depression. Our psychiatrists utilize ketamine infusions for treatment of appropriate conditions.
No referral is needed; we treat all patients with a crisis as they come through our Emergency Department.
Ketamine Treatment in Interventional Psychiatry
Now offering Ketamine treatment for patients in San Antonio, New Braunfels, Seguin, Canyon Lake, San Marcos, and surrounding areas.
What is Ketamine
Ketamine is a very safe anesthetic that has been used for the last fifty years, all over the world, in much higher doses to put patients to sleep before surgeries. In recent years, evidence emerged suggesting that low-dose therapy is very effective for mood disorders, chronic pain treatment, and suicidal ideation. Such doses are often 4-6 times smaller than what is administered for anesthesia.
During the Treatment
The infusion is done in a monitored bed in a hospital setting, where Vital signs and the patient’s condition are closely monitored by our experienced nurses and physicians. You will need to have not eaten for 6 hours before the infusion.
During the infusion, you will be encouraged to be comfortable. Many people listen to calming music, and you’re free to bring family members into the room for company. However, talking and excessive stimulation is often discouraged, especially during the first treatment.
Ketamine Infusions are Successful in Treating the Following:
• Depression
• Postpartum Depression
• Suicidal Ideation
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)
• Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
• Generalized Anxiety
• Fibromyalgia
• Chronic Pain Syndromes
IV Ketamine vs. Other Routes of Administration
We use IV Ketamine because intramuscular and intranasal routes have unreliable and variable absorption from patient to patient. IV administration is also preferred over other routes because the most robust trials to date use IV Ketamine.
How Many Infusions do I Need?
There are many protocols for Ketamine use. For acute crisis stabilization, the protocol involves 3 infusions. Results have shown a 76% reduction in suicidality after just 3 infusions. This allows many patients to avoid inpatient hospitalization and to return to the life they want quicker than other treatment methods.