One South: Portrait of a Psych Unit (2024)

Overview

One South is an inpatient psychiatric unit at Zucker Hillside Hospital in Queens, NY, specializing in treating young adults. It may look more like a college dorm than a psychiatric hospital, but patients arrive every day in acute crisis. They are dealing with a variety of mental health issues, including depression, anxiety, personality disorders, and psychosis, and many have contemplated or attempted suicide. A team of doctors, social workers, and nurses work together to stabilize the patients and prepare them to return to the outside world