A major milestone was reached this winter in the fight to address St. Louis’ youth mental health crisis, as St. Louis Children’s Hospital and KVC Health Systems celebrated the topping out of a new, state-of-the-art pediatric mental health hospital in Webster Groves.
Slated to open in late 2026, the 77-bed facility is the result of a joint venture between the two organizations and will offer four levels of care for children and teens ages 6–18. Built on KVC Missouri’s Children’s Mental Wellness Campus, the hospital aims to expand urgently needed inpatient capacity, reduce emergency department bottlenecks, and provide families with more timely, comprehensive mental health support.
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For families who have been waiting too long for care, the new hospital represents something many need most right now: hope. “We know this facility is going to impact so many children and families—it’s going to save lives across the region,” says Lindsey Stephenson, president of KVC Missouri. “To be able to fill such a critical need is incredibly meaningful.”
The urgency behind that statement is backed by stark numbers. St. Louis currently has fewer than half of the pediatric mental health beds needed to meet demand, a shortage that often leaves children waiting days—or longer—in emergency departments for appropriate care.
“That lack of inpatient capacity means kids are spending far too much time in emergency rooms without receiving the treatment they need,” says Trisha Lollo, president of St. Louis Children’s Hospital. “This hospital helps close a critical gap for families across our community.”
Addressing a crisis of this scale required more than expansion—it required collaboration. After recognizing that demand for pediatric mental health care far exceeded its capacity, St. Louis Children’s Hospital launched a national search for a partner with deep expertise in youth behavioral health, ultimately joining forces with KVC Health Systems, a national leader that already operates multiple inpatient mental health hospitals for children.
“We knew we wanted to do something at a much larger scale,” Lollo says. “And we knew there were experts out there who had already done this work—and done it well.”
When it opens in late 2026, the hospital will serve children and teens ages 6–18 and offer four levels of care—acute inpatient treatment, psychiatric residential care, partial hospitalization, and intensive outpatient services. Together, those services form a full continuum designed to meet kids where they are, whether they need immediate stabilization or longer-term support close to home.
“Not every child needs the same level of care, but every child needs the right care at the right time,” Stephenson says. “This allows us to assess kids quickly and connect them to what will help them most.”
For many families in the region, limited options have meant traveling long distances for care or leaving families waiting in emergency rooms. Leaders say the new facility is designed to change that by keeping children in familiar surroundings, close to their families and communities, where healing can happen more effectively.
“We want kids to receive care in the communities where they live,” Stephenson says. “When you’re talking about healing, familiarity and comfort really matter.”
Unlike traditional hospital settings, the new mental health facility is being intentionally designed to feel less clinical and more like a place where children can simply be themselves. Located on KVC’s long-standing Children’s Mental Wellness Campus in Webster Groves (330 N. Gore), the hospital will be surrounded by nature and neighborhood life—details that leaders say are critical to healing.
“These facilities are intentionally designed to let kids be kids,” Lollo says. “They need space to move their bodies, to get outside, and to feel a sense of normalcy—even while receiving care.”
From outdoor spaces to thoughtfully planned interiors, every detail is being considered through the lens of safety, comfort, and dignity. “We constantly ask ourselves, ‘Would I be comfortable bringing my own child here during their most vulnerable moment?’” Stephenson says. “If the answer isn’t yes, then we fix it.”
One of the hospital’s defining features is the expertise coming together within a single, coordinated campus. Specialists from KVC Health Systems, Camber Mental Health, WashU Medicine, and St. Louis Children’s Hospital will collaborate to provide comprehensive, seamless care, reducing the need for families to navigate multiple systems during a crisis.
“Instead of parents having to go to several different organizations to find the right care, all of that expertise is happening in one place,” Stephenson says. “Each partner brings deep experience, and together we can focus on delivering the very best outcomes for kids and families.”
The model allows clinicians to focus on what they do best, while families benefit from faster assessments, coordinated treatment plans, and smoother transitions between levels of care.
While construction is underway, leaders say community support remains essential. The project has received major contributions from the state of Missouri, KVC Health Systems, and St. Louis Children’s Hospital, but an additional $24 million in philanthropic funding is still needed to bring the hospital fully to life.
As construction continues toward a late 2026 opening, leaders behind the project hope the hospital stands as a lasting promise to families across the region that when a child is struggling, help is close, compassionate, and real.
“The message we want families to hear is simple,” Lollo says. “We see you, we hear you—and there is hope.”
