About Us

More About Our Work

St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute (SLBMI) serves the St. Louis Metropolitan Area with behavioral health treatment and specialty programs for mental and emotional issues. SLBMI’s multidisciplinary treatment teams are committed to providing patients with compassionate care.

St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute is an academic affiliate of Saint Louis University Health Sciences Center. Our faculty and staff support the academic mission of the University as frequent contributors to professional journals and at professional meetings. They also participate in advanced training of family practice residents, psychologists, social workers and medical students.

SLBMI’s main office is located in a two-story professional office building off-campus in the city of St. Louis. SLBMI also has two satellite offices in the metropolitan area, in Chesterfield and Belleville.

Since 1983, the Division of Behavioral Medicine (Saint Louis University) has worked with many types of patients: from those with general counseling needs to the most complex cases requiring specialized multidisciplinary care. St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute integrates knowledge and techniques from behavioral and medical sciences to provide comprehensive treatment for a wide range of health problems. Treatment approaches include cognitive and behavioral therapies and other empirically supported therapies in individual or group formats.

Our Mission Statement

St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute is dedicated to the promotion of mental and physical health by integrating knowledge from the behavioral sciences with the latest advances in contemporary medicine. In pursuit of our mission and as an affiliate of Saint Louis University Health Sciences Center, we strive to:

  • Deliver compassionate, interdisciplinary patient care attentive to the vital relationship between body, mind and spirit.
  • Discover new knowledge and treatments by conducting scientific research and staying abreast of progress in the field.
  • Educate healthcare students and professionals.
  • Advance community awareness of behavioral medicine principles to prevent illness and enhance health.

Our History

In 1995, St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute became an established resource for behavioral healthcare in the St. Louis Metropolitan Community with three locations in St. Louis, Chesterfield and Belleville. The professional staff includes psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, family medicine and internal medicine doctors, nurses, licensed professional counselors, physical therapists, spiritual directors, art therapists and dietitians. Many aspects of our work involve multidisciplinary treatment teams working together to meet the individual needs of the patients we serve.

SLBMI offers various levels of care depending on the patients’ needs. Our services include individual outpatient, family, and intensive outpatient programs, and partial hospitalization programs. Patients and their families work with our professional teams to identify problems and formulate individual treatment plans and an appropriate level of care.

St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute provides services for many patient concerns, with specialized services for depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, OCD, child and adolescent problems, chronic pain and headaches, and other behavioral health issues.

A Welcome Letter from the CEO

Warmest welcome to SLBMI. Whether this is your first introduction to us or you are a long-time friend of the Institute, I hope that you find your experiences with us genuinely true to our missions as possible.

The roots of SLBMI began within the founding of the Division of Behavioral Medicine by Dr. Ronald Margolis in 1982 at Saint Louis University Medical Center. In 1995, Dr. Margolis established the St. Louis Behavioral Medicine Institute as a free-standing resource for behavioral healthcare in the St. Louis Metropolitan Community, as well as serving patients from around the country. SLBMI became an academic affiliate of St. Louis University and joined Universal Health Services, Inc., one of the nation’s leading mental health providers. Throughout SLBMI’s history, it has grown and has continued to expand. Currently, we have three locations serving St. Louis City, Chesterfield and Belleville, with a multidisciplinary group of over 60 clinicians.

In 2019, SLBMI’s Dr. Margolis stepped down as CEO and I accepted the position. I am honored and privileged to be given the opportunity and responsibility to continue Dr. Margolis’ legacy to grow and expand the Institute as a recognized leader in the delivery, discovery, education and advancement of behavioral health treatment.

SLBMI was built on the cornerstone of four missions:

  • Deliver compassionate, interdisciplinary patient care attentive to the vital relationship between body, mind, and spirit.
  • Discover new knowledge and effective treatments by conducting scientific research and staying abreast of the progress in the field.
  • Educate healthcare students and professionals.
  • Advance community awareness of behavioral medicine principles to prevent illness and enhance health.

I believe our mission statements are what have led the Institute into a fully established leading expert in the community for quality multidisciplinary specialty behavioral health treatment and advancement of knowledge in the field, both regionally and nationally.

The Institute is proud of its focus on recruiting and advancing expertise with social workers, licensed professional counselors, psychologists and psychiatrists to provide specialty treatment. Our clinicians and psychiatrists are highly trained in a multitude of primary mental health areas, including depression, adult ADHD, grief counseling, stress counseling, psychological testing services, and marriage, family and couples counseling.

As a practicing Licensed Clinical Psychologist myself, I firmly believe in upholding the strongest values within excellence to quality within each of the Institute’s mission statements. If I can be of any help, including feedback or suggestions on how the Institute could improve its services, you may also contact me at [email protected].

Sincerely,
Jessica Gerfen, PhD
CEO

We’re Only a Phone Call Away

If you would rather reach our Intake Coordinators by phone, please call 314-289-9411 to discuss appointment scheduling if you or a loved one may be experiencing a mental health issue. For additional questions about our programs, you can also use our online contact form.

In the case of a medical emergency or crisis, please dial 911 or go to the nearest emergency room.

Help and hope are closer than you think.

Personalized mental health treatment is ready for you. We are here to help.

Contact Us

New patients please call Intake Coordinators at:

City of St. Louis, Missouri (Macklind)

1129 Macklind Ave,
St. Louis, MO 63110
314-534-0200 (returning patients)

Chesterfield, Missouri (West County)

16216 Baxter Rd. Stes 205 and 225,
Chesterfield, MO 63017
636-532-9188 (returning patients)

Fairview Heights, Illinois

331 Salem Place, Suite 225-A,
Fairview Heights, IL 62208
618-825-0051 (returning patients)