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Cedar Springs Hospital Announces New Director of Military Psychiatry

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – (March 30, 2010) – Cedar Springs Hospital is pleased to announce the appointment of Charles H. Dukes, M.D., as Director of Military Psychiatry. Cedar Springs, a Psychiatric Solutions, Inc. (PSI) facility, is a fully licensed, private hospital specializing in the treatment of psychiatric, addictive and co-occurring disorders in patients of all ages.

Cedar Springs is one of eight PSI facilities nationwide designated as a Patriot Support Center that helps Active Duty Military, Veterans and their families manage the emotional and psychological effects of combat theater stress and post-deployment adjustment related issues. Dr. Dukes welcomes the opportunity to help service men and women at Cedar Springs because of his involvement with the U.S. Navy and Army Reserves.

“Patriot Support Centers like Cedar Springs seek to partner with the military to provide quality mental health care to service members,” said Dr. Dukes, who has been deployed to Iraq in the past. “For these Americans who have answered the call of duty, we proudly answer the call to care.”

Dr. Dukes, a Jackson, Miss., native, has more than 22 years of military experience with active deployments to the combat theater. He enlisted in the Navy in 1985 and served as a Hospital Corpsman. While a Navy reservist, Dr. Dukes graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s in philosophy and religion from Newberry College. He also earned a Master of Divinity from Gettysburg Lutheran Seminary and served as a Chaplain in the Navy Reserves. Additionally, he earned an M.D. from Ross University.

In 2005, he was commissioned in the Army medical corps and subsequently provided psychiatric care to soldiers at Camp Taji in Iraq in 2008 as a part of a combat stress team. Recently, Dr. Dukes was activated to provide psychiatric support for individuals involved in the tragedy at Fort Hood.

Cedar Springs CEO Elaine Crnkovic is delighted to have Dr. Dukes serve as director of military psychiatry for the facility because of his well-rounded background and military experience.

“We are very proud to have Dr. Dukes join the Cedar Springs team,” said Crnkovic. “His experience and expertise in treating our country’s service men and women will assist us in continuing to provide outstanding patient care to those that have sacrificed so much for our country.”

About Cedar Springs Hospital
Cedar Springs Hospital is a fully licensed, 110-bed private hospital specializing in the treatment of psychiatric, addictive and co-occurring disorders in children, adolescents, adults and seniors. Treatment programs include inpatient psychiatric stabilization, residential chemical dependency and dual-diagnosis treatment for adults, residential Complex PTSD/PTSD for adults and psychiatric residential treatment. Cedar Springs Hospital is one of eight PSI Patriot Support Centers with dedicated military programs. The facility is licensed by the State of Colorado and fully accredited by The Joint Commission. As a community service, the hospital provides free face-to-face assessments and referral services by appointment, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. For more information, please visit www.cedarspringsmediapsi.com or www.psipatriotsupport.com

About Psychiatric Solutions, Inc. (PSI)
Psychiatric Solutions, Inc. offers an extensive continuum of behavioral health programs to critically ill children, adolescents and adults and is the largest operator of owned or leased freestanding psychiatric inpatient facilities with more than 11,000 beds in 32 states, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. PSI also manages freestanding psychiatric inpatient facilities for government agencies and psychiatric inpatient units within medical/surgical hospitals owned by others. For more information, please visit www.mediapsi.com

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