PMHS History

Petersburg Mental Health Services (PMHS) was established in 1993 to provide mental health services.  In 2003, PMHS became an integrated treatment center, providing mental health and outpatient substance abuse services.

PMHS successfully delivered community-based behavioral health services, serving as the hub of a wheel of programs that coordinated, cooperated and collaborated to care for our most vulnerable community members, including the hospital, schools, churches, court, police department, Head Start, child protection agencies, and social service agencies. We were proud to be a comprehensive behavioral health program that was seen as a model center in Alaska and called the behavioral health “jewel of southeast.” 

After close to 3 decades of providing 24 hour behavioral health services to our town PMHS worked with the Southeast Alaska Regional Health Consortium (SEARHC) to shift services to their larger organization on April 1, 2021.  This was not a merger of organizations.  PMHS keeps a smaller office in our current building and continues as an active nonprofit working in more focused ways, staying true to our mission to increase and improve available locally-based behavioral health options and do “whatever works” to help our community.

We demonstrate this in providing short-term support for grief and trauma or other life situations not typically covered by insurance, at no cost, to up to 10 clients per week.  We also help fund other nonprofits, increasing their ability to work effectively, encouraging community engagement, and successfully competing for grant funding.