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The $100 million Campaign for McLean Hospital was McLean’s first comprehensive philanthropic campaign. Ending early and over goal, more than 6,000 supporters contributed to the campaign. Every gift, large and small, helped the hospital go “Above and Beyond” expectations. Our report on the impact of this effort outlines how it has advanced McLean’s mission of improving the lives of individuals and families affected by mental illness.

Campaign goes above and beyond

The need for novel, evidence-based care that addresses the specific mental health needs of girls and women is profound. McLean’s Center of Excellence in Women’s Mental Health focuses on wide-ranging efforts to provide world-class mental health care for women and girls throughout their lives.

A national leader in this emerging field, the center provides a uniting infrastructure that advances all three of McLean’s mission elements: clinical care, training and education, and research. It brings together an array of professionals with a wide range of psychiatric and scientific expertise whose collaborative efforts are improving the lives of girls and women—and their families.

Women’s mental health

“I was always a little different from everyone. Awkward. Very, very awkward.” – Aaron

As a junior in high school Aaron hit what he called a “tipping point.” He felt like he was a soda bottle that had been shaken repeatedly until he finally exploded and told his parents that he wanted to take his own life. Despite therapy, Aaron did attempt suicide. Once his body healed, his parents found McLean’s 3East program.

The 3East Outpatient Clinic at McLean specifically serves suicidal and self-harming teenagers. At 3East, Aaron was diagnosed with borderline personality disorder and received the treatment he needed. The 3East staff worked with Aaron and his family, teaching them lifesaving dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) skills that would help them move forward.

“The tools that [McLean] has put in our toolbox have been life-changing for us as a family,” says Karen, Aaron’s mom.

Aaron graduated from high school and is now thriving at college where he volunteers for the college’s student-run, volunteer EMT and first responder program.

“For me, McLean is a place that has transformed my life. It has changed the direction of it completely … so my world has been changed because of that.”

Watch Aaron’s story

McLean is home to a number of prominent clinicians who provide some of the country’s most specialized care for individuals suffering from complex post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Its researchers are leading the scientific front by exploring the environmental, genetic, and neurobiological components of trauma-related disorders. And the hospital has a growing effort to disseminate models of trauma-informed care across the full spectrum of its clinical programs.

Now, a $2.5 million anonymous gift will create opportunities to augment and integrate these efforts, with the goal of making meaningful advances through trauma research, care, and training.

Gift propels trauma research, care, and training to new levels