Private equity firm Patriot Capital has announced a growth capital partnership with behavioral health provider Turnwell Mental Health Network.
Dallas, Texas-based Turnwell is an integrated mental health group that provides behavioral health care to individuals with mental health disorders. It is specifically focused on serving patients in underserved markets.
It operates “multiple” freestanding outpatient clinics in Arizona and Montana. Its services include mental health counseling, primary care and patient and family education. It also offers psychiatric services, including medication management, TMS, ketamine and Spravato.
The company, which doesn’t list its exact number of locations on its website, plans to put the new capital toward expansion.
Turnwell has partnered with multiple behavioral health providers. In February, for example, Arizona-based Scottsdale Mental Health & Wellness Institute announced that it was joining the Turnwell network.
Mental health is a hotspot for investment this year. In fact, 60% of behavioral health insiders reported that mental health was the most attractive investment target, according to a Behavioral Health Business survey.
Additionally, survey takers ranked treating underserved populations as the greatest opportunity for the industry in 2023.
This isn’t Patriot Capital’s first behavioral health investment. In September, the middle-market PE firm invested in Global Behavior Education Alliance, an autism-focused provider that offers evaluations, applied behavioral analysis (ABA), counseling services, therapies and educational support.
In 2021 Patriot Capital sold D&S Community Services, a residential and community service provider for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, to Mentor Network.
Along with Patriot Capital, several other private equity firms are paying attention to the behavioral health space. Looking back, 2022 was the second-best year for behavioral health transactions in history, with M&A advisory firm The Braff Group reporting at least 201 deals.
“It’s hard to find many sectors of the economy that show the same tailwinds and growing acceptance as behavioral health,” John Hennegan, founding partner of private equity firm Shore Capital, said during a Behavioral Health Business webinar. “We just see declines in stigma and growing acceptance from the older generations, down to a younger generation that has grown up in an environment where behavioral health is something they’re comfortable talking about and utilizing the services.”
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