The Harris Center Neuropsychiatric Houston

The NeuroPsychiatric Center, known as the NPC, is a unit of The Harris Center that opened in 1965. It concentrates on urgent psychiatric care for people in serious mental health crises, and it also treats substance use disorders. Staff coordinate mental health services and detox in one place so that a person in distress can be assessed and stabilized without being sent elsewhere. The center provides round-the-clock crisis response, an on-site pharmacy for medications needed without delay, and treatment designed around each person's diagnosis.

Because the NPC sits at the Harris Health Ben Taub Hospital campus near the Houston Zoo, it serves a broad cross-section of the city, including children and adolescents who need age-appropriate psychiatric care. Its work is not limited to emergencies. The center also runs detoxification and substance use treatment, offers continuing care after discharge, and connects people to outpatient services and support meetings. Families are included in treatment through family therapy.

Staff describe the approach as evidence-based, medical, individual, and trauma informed. In practice, a person can arrive in crisis, be evaluated for both psychiatric and substance-related needs, and leave with a plan that may include outpatient treatment, housing services, or support meetings. The center lists Spanish among its languages, along with English.

Programs and levels of care in Houston

Two levels of care are listed by the center: detox and residential rehab. Detox at this Houston facility is medical, which means medical and psychiatric staff monitor withdrawal. At this Houston center, medical detox is supervised by medical and psychiatric staff on site. The typical program runs 14 days, though individual needs vary. After withdrawal, residential rehab offers people a stable place to keep stabilizing, with structure and support throughout the day.

Therapy at the NPC includes individual counseling, group therapy family therapy cognitive behavioral therapy. Life skills, psychoeducation, and relapse prevention counseling round out the services. The Harris Center NeuroPsychiatric Houston offers detox and residential rehab to adults and children. Because the center treats co-occurring disorders, mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and schizophrenia are addressed alongside substance use. Substances treated include alcohol, benzodiazepines, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, opioids, and ecstasy.

1. Evidence-Based
2. Psychoeducation
3. Family Therapy
4. 1-on-1 Counseling
5. Individual Treatment
6. Relapse Prevention Counseling
7. Life Skills
8. Group Therapy
9. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
10. Trauma Informed

Who the Harris Center NPC serves

1. Young people, children, and adults, covering men and women as well as boys and girls
2. People in psychiatric crisis, such as suicidal thoughts, self-harm, or acute psychosis
3. Individuals whose substance use disorders involve alcohol, opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine, or benzodiazepines
4. People dealing simultaneously with a substance use disorder with a mental health condition
5. Spanish-speaking patients, as the center lists Spanish among its languages

The Houston setting

The center is located at 1502 Ben Taub Loop in Houston, Texas, on the Harris Health Ben Taub Hospital campus near the Houston Zoo. The setting is a hospital-based unit rather than a standalone retreat, which means medical and psychiatric support is close at hand. Houston residents can reach this Ben Taub Loop center for urgent psychiatric and detox care. Its on-site pharmacy supports both mental health treatment and recovery from substance use, and the 24-hour crisis response means someone in distress can be seen promptly.

Paying for care at the Harris Center NPC

The center lists self-pay pricing. As part of The Harris Center, a public behavioral health authority, it also connects people to services that public programs may fund; Texas Medicaid is one option people ask about. When comparing Houston rehabs, ask every program which payment options it accepts. Cost depends on the level of care and length of stay, and the center's typical program length is 14 days.

Things to ask the center

1. Will the center accept my insurance or Medicaid, or must I pay cash for this level of care?
2. Will my psychiatric medications be continued during detox, and who manages them?
3. How are children and adolescents separated from adult patients during residential care?
4. What outpatient treatment or housing services are arranged at discharge?
5. Can family members take part in family therapy, and when?