Crisis Nursery Steps in for Stressed Parents

When a mother needs a break and has nowhere to turn, two doctors and a former teacher hope she will bring her child to Larimer.

They are co-founders of Jeremiah’s Place, a family support nonprofit that plans to open Pittsburgh’s only crisis nursery in January in the Kingsley Association building on Frankstown Avenue.

“We’re going to do the job of taking care of the kids for a bit of time, to relieve the stress, but our real work is with the family,” said Dr. Lynne Williams, a pediatrician. “We don’t want to duplicate services already in Pittsburgh; we want to connect the family to those services.”

Jeremiah’s Place will provide 24/7 care for children 6 and younger for up to 72 hours, Williams said. Research shows that kids who experience stressful events such as physical abuse, witnessing domestic abuse or a parent with a substance abuse problem can develop mental and physical health issues as adults, Williams said.