Skip to main content
CRF Behavioral Healthcare

Hawthorne Crisis Center

Service: Crisis Care

We are proud to announce that Vista Balboa Crisis Center has been renamed Hawthorne Crisis Center in honor of CRF’s Founder, Dr. William “Hobie” Hawthorne. He was CEO from 1977 to 2022 and passed away in June 2024.  Dr. Hawthorne pioneered the Short-Term Acute Residential Treatment (START) crisis residential model in San Diego County. He was committed to outcomes research and was successful in having the START model nationally recognized as evidence based.  This name change is a reflection of our deep appreciation for Dr. Hawthorne’s vision, leadership, and enduring impact on the mental health community.

This is a name change only. All program services, staff, and operations remain the same.

We appreciate your support during this transition as we celebrate Dr. Hawthorne’s valuable contributions to our clients, staff and community.

Hawthorne Crisis Center, located in Bankers Hill adjacent to Balboa Park is a Short-Term Acute Residential Treatment (START) crisis residential program that provides a voluntary, short-term alternative to psychiatric hospitalization in a home-like setting.

Services are tailored to each individual and include behavioral health and psychiatric evaluations, medication management, individual, milieu, and group counseling, life skills education groups, integrated substance use treatment, recreational and social activities, and discharge planning for ongoing services. The average length of stay is nine days.

The programs are funded by the County of San Diego, HHSA, Behavioral Health Services.

Eligibility Criteria

  • 18 years of age or older
  • In psychiatric crisis of sufficient severity to require inpatient services
  • A mental health condition as the primary focus of treatment. May also have a co-occurring substance use condition that is not primary
  • Any medical conditions must be stable and safely managed at an outpatient level
  • Voluntarily agree to services and program guidelines
  • Medi-Cal, Medi-Cal eligible or uninsured accepted. No one is denied services based on inability to pay

How to Refer

Contact any of the START programs and ask for the Admission Coordinator.

Hawthorne Crisis Center

Service: Crisis Care

Contact

Hours:
24/7

Career Opportunities At Hawthorne Crisis Center

CRF is a friendly, rewarding, and dynamic place to work. We believe in teamwork and collaboration throughout our organization. We are committed to our staff and their ability to learn and grow in their profession while serving others in our community.

Filter By:
Position
Program
Service
Region
Career Type
Loading Job Openings...
More Careers Info
Employee Testimonials

“There are a ton of training opportunities at this agency for clinical staff. They have online training, classroom training, and individual and group supervision. It is a lot of work, but there is a lot of support and you can easily max out on intern hours each week. They also hire and promote from within.”

“Great benefits: Health insurance, awesome PTO, paid holidays, Supervision: Amazing. You will get your hours in no-time. High quality supervisors as well. Opportunity for growth: Since there are so many locations, it’s easy to move from clinic to clinic if you want a new challenge, different position, different location, etc. Family feel: The staff are awesome and supportive. FUN Training: They make sure that you get adequate training on important things in the field. Experience: You will see every diagnosis and learn everything you need to know about mental health from this job. Great experience for moving forward in your career.”

“Extremely valuable experience with diverse populations; free, quality clinical supervision. Meaningful ‘feel-good’ work, and supervisors are supportive.”

“I have worked [at CRF for] 2+ years and I believe in this company. We are a nonprofit so the wages are about industry average, but the benefits are incredibly generous…I feel fortunate to work with a wonderful group of people. I recommend CRF and look forward to many more years of helping make our community a better place.”