In Rhode Island, public mental health care is overseen by the Division of Behavioral Healthcare at BHDDH, the state mental health authority. When you call or text 988 from Rhode Island, trained counselors at BH Link answer, and BH Link also runs a walk in crisis center in East Providence that's open to adults 24 hours a day. NAMI Rhode Island offers free support groups and classes for people living with a mental health condition and for their families.
Rhode Island's Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics serve anyone who walks in, regardless of age, diagnosis or insurance. For a child or teen in emotional crisis, parents can call Kids' Link RI at 1-855-543-5465 any time.
Rhode Island's community care runs through six Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics, located in Woonsocket, Providence, Pawtucket, Johnston, South County, Newport County and Warwick. Each offers outpatient mental health and substance use care, and calling 988 can connect you to a clinic's mobile crisis team around the clock. Adults in crisis can walk into BH Link at 975 Waterman Avenue in East Providence at any hour instead of going to an emergency room. Academic psychiatry is centered in Providence, where Butler Hospital is the main teaching hospital for Brown University's Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior.
Crisis lines
- 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Call or text 988 anywhere in the United States, including from Rhode Island. Free and confidential, 24 hours a day. For chat, visit 988lifeline.org.
- 988 in Rhode Island (BH Link). In Rhode Island, 988 calls are answered by trained crisis counselors at BH Link, the state's crisis center for mental health and substance use. Call or text 988 for yourself or for someone you're worried about.
- Kids' Link RI. A free, confidential line for parents and caregivers of children and youth in emotional crisis, available 24 hours a day. Call 1-855-543-5465 to talk with a clinician who can help you find the right place for treatment.
- Samaritans of Rhode Island Listening Line. A confidential listening line for Rhode Islanders who need someone to talk to, run by the Samaritans since 1977. Call (401) 272-4044 or (800) 365-4044.
- United Way 2-1-1 in Rhode Island. The statewide information and referral line. Dial 211, free and confidential, 24 hours a day, to reach a call specialist who can help with mental health, food, housing and other needs.
Crisis care and mobile crisis
- BH Link crisis receiving and stabilization center. A walk in crisis center for adults 18 and older at 975 Waterman Avenue, East Providence, open 24 hours a day with no appointment needed. Call 988 or (401) 414-5465, or go in person for assessment, short term stabilization and referrals.
- Mobile crisis through Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics. Rhode Island's CCBHCs run mobile crisis teams that can come to you around the clock. Call 988 and a trained professional will help decide whether you need a same day or next day appointment, a mobile team or an emergency response.
State mental health authority
- BHDDH Division of Behavioral Healthcare. The state mental health authority and single state agency for substance use treatment, which licenses providers and funds BH Link and the 988 line. Its page explains how to reach community mental health centers and CCBHCs.
- BHDDH: Where to get help. The state's list of crisis lines and community mental health centers, with each center's emergency phone number. Use it to find the agency that serves your town.
NAMI Rhode Island
- NAMI Rhode Island. Offers free NAMI Connection and family support groups, plus classes such as Family-to-Family, Peer-to-Peer and Basics. Call or text the Providence office at 401-331-3060, or call the NAMI National HelpLine at 800-950-6264.
Community mental health centers
- Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs). Six clinics that serve anyone regardless of age, diagnosis, insurance or ability to pay: Community Care Alliance, Family Service of Rhode Island, Gateway Healthcare, Newport Mental Health, The Providence Center and Thrive Behavioral Health. Visit a clinic's website to book an appointment or ask about walk in hours.
Treatment locators
- FindTreatment.gov. The federal SAMHSA locator for mental health and substance use treatment. Search by Rhode Island address or ZIP code and filter by payment type.
- EOHHS Medicaid Provider Search. The state's search tool for health care professionals who accept Rhode Island Medicaid. A listing doesn't guarantee the provider is taking new patients, so call first or check with your health plan.
University and academic medical centers
- Brown University Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior. The psychiatry department of the Warren Alpert Medical School in Providence, which leads research, training and clinical programs. It sponsors a general psychiatry residency and a combined pediatrics, psychiatry and child psychiatry program.
- Butler Hospital. Rhode Island's only nonprofit, freestanding psychiatric hospital, in Providence, and the main teaching hospital for Brown's psychiatry department. It offers inpatient, partial hospital and intensive outpatient programs for adults, seniors and adolescents; call +1 (844) 401-0111.
- Bradley Hospital. A Brown University Health hospital in East Providence with inpatient, partial hospital, outpatient and intensive OCD and anxiety programs for children and teens. It's a teaching hospital for Brown's medical school and a partner in Kids' Link RI; call 401-432-1000.
Other state programs
- Parent Support Network of Rhode Island. Free peer support for parents and caregivers dealing with a child's mental health or substance use challenges, from trained family support partners with lived experience. It also runs parent support groups across the state.
- Rhode Island Medicaid (EOHHS). The Executive Office of Health and Human Services runs Rhode Island Medicaid. Use the site to apply, update your information, change health plans or find a Medicaid provider.