JUPITER, Fla. — James Butler got the call on the afternoon of Jan. 17.
On the recommendation of his daughter’s school, Butler had just signed her up for a school-based counseling program after she told a guidance counselor she’d previously attempted suicide.
Butler shared his daughter’s story with her blessing, under the condition that she not be named.
James Butler tells WPTV of the struggle to get help for his daughter in Palm Beach County
When the call came that Friday, the need was much more urgent.
"[The counselor] told me that my daughter was actually expressing that she was thinking about suicide right now,” Butler said. "They recommended that I take her to the emergency room to be admitted and then evaluated."
When he took her to the emergency room in Jupiter, Butler told WPTV he knew bed space was limited for psychiatric patients. But he didn’t know how limited it would be.
"She met with the doctor, and the doctor came back and said, 'I'm going to Baker Act her,'" Butler said.
In November, JFK North Hospital in West Palm Beach said it would no longer accept patients under the Baker Act younger than 12. The hospital said the move was to add more resources to meet growing psychiatric needs among adolescents.
Before the change, JFK North was the only facility in the county that would accept patients that young under the Baker Act.
The Baker Act is the Florida law that allows individuals that pose a threat to themselves or others to be placed under involuntary psychiatric observation for up to 72 hours. The practice is controversial, uncommon and used generally as a last resort for children under the age of 12.
Butler’s daughter is 11.
WPTV Investigates
Soon this group can no longer be held under Baker Act in Palm Beach Co.
"So we stay in the emergency room," Butler said. “The next day comes around, they let us know that they still haven't found any beds."
The Butlers couldn't leave, but they also had no place to go.
The wait in the ER stretched across two nights. Butler said his daughter resisted the urge to use the restroom because she was embarrassed to walk through the halls wearing only a hospital gown.
"The nurses there are playing games with her and stuff like that," Butler said. "Everybody's trying to do what they can. Unfortunately, it's not getting us to the next step that we need to get to, which is — she's not receiving any mental health help while she's there."
"I had one of the nurses look at me, and she's like, 'I'm so sorry about this,’” Butler said. “She's like, 'This — the system is broken.’"
After two nights in the ER, Butler found an available psychiatric bed for his daughter. It was in Fort Pierce.
Butler said per protocol, his daughter was strapped to a gurney for the hour-long ambulance ride to the Fort Pierce facility, where she spent one night.
Butler took his daughter home the following Monday.
"I was trying to get a diagnosis and I was trying to get a treatment plan, and that wasn't happening," he said.
"I think it's embarrassing and a shame that we have to travel to other counties to get access to this care," said Palm Beach County Commissioner Joel Flores, one of two Palm Beach County officials who Butler said helped him find the bed in Fort Pierce. "We have to deal with the consequences of our children not getting the quality care, and we have to do better."
On Jan. 7, 10 days before the Butlers went to the emergency room, the commission unanimously approved $10 million to help the Health Care District of Palm Beach County build a new psychiatric receiving facility for patients of all ages and levels of need.
The money from the county is a fraction of the project’s cost.
"When we gave them that $10 million, we said, 'You have five years to complete this.’ So we're five years out to getting a finalized product," Flores said. “So we need to find out, how do we address some of the concerns and the issues now?"
PREVIOUS: WPTV spoke with a mother who crossed counties to get her son care
The commission is still working to answer that question, and they’re hoping for the public’s help.
Flores said the commission plans to host a workshop for members of the public and other stakeholders in the mental healthcare community to discuss short-term solutions while the receiving facility is built.
In the meantime, Butler says his daughter seems to be feeling better. She is back in school and getting professional help.
"You’ve just got to not be afraid to ask for help," Butler said.
