Oceans Healthcare, Louisiana’s largest provider of psychiatric facilities for geriatric patients, today closed a $17m round of strategic growth equity financing from General Catalyst Partners. The financing will be used to capitalize the organization as a foundation for its geographic expansion. As part of the transformation, Charlie Baker, former CEO of Harvard Pilgrim Healthcare, one of the country’s top-rated health benefits companies, will join Oceans as Chairman of the Board.

The company also announced that David Fialkow, Brian Shortsleeve, Gabe Ling, and Charlie Baker, all of General Catalyst Partners, will join Oceans’ Board of Directors. Co-Founders Jason Reed and Nick Guillory, founded Oceans in 2004 and will remain as CEO and COO, respectively and will be responsible for running the day to day business.

Oceans’ unique approach is based on a platform that couples smaller facilities delivering specific care to a singular audience; while most psychiatric facilities mix patients of all age groups, Oceans singularly provides top-quality services to adults over 55 suffering from mood and behavior disturbances or progressive, degenerative illnesses. The Oceans model of providing highly-focused, individualized care has been nationally recognized for its clinical and operational excellence by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. In the state of Louisiana, only 15 hospitals made the Joint Commission’s Top Performers list, and two Oceans facilities were the only psychiatric providers chosen. Oceans and General Catalyst will build on Oceans’ tradition of excellence to expand its services platform beyond Louisiana.

“General Catalyst’s credo—‘entrepreneurs investing in entrepreneurs’—was extremely attractive to Oceans as we sought growth equity. I wanted a partner that would provide mentorship as well as capital,” said Jason Reed, Ocean Healthcare’s Co-Founder and CEO. “We are now positioned to build and refine our unique model—one that is focused on treating superior psychiatric care to a specific, fast-growing population by delivering the best possible care from the industry’s best employees—to new geographies.”

“The entrepreneurs behind Oceans Healthcare are creating a truly distinctive patient care delivery model in a $15-20B industry—inpatient mental health services —that has not historically focused solely on treating the needs of seniors,” said Charlie Baker, Oceans’ new Chairman. Previously Baker was CEO at one of New England’s largest group practices and led one of New England’s largest health insurers, Harvard Pilgrim Healthcare. “Oceans couples a strong founding team with a unique healthcare services model to provide essential services that will improve the lives of geriatric patients and their families.”

About Oceans Healthcare

Oceans was founded in 2004 and is currently the largest behavioral health provider in Louisiana. The company focuses on providing gero-psychiatric treatment services to patients age 55 and older, and is focused on treating dementia-related or other progressive mental illness. Oceans currently owns and operates 10 inpatient behavioral health hospitals in Louisiana as well as 10 intensive outpatient programs. For further information, visit www.ohcg.info.

About General Catalyst Partners

General Catalyst Partners is a growth equity and venture capital firm that invests in exceptional entrepreneurs who are building the technology-based companies that will lead innovation and transform industries. Founded in 2000, General Catalyst Partners leverages its principals' extensive operational, business development and technological expertise to provide portfolio companies with a catalyst for success through business-building and partnership development assistance. General Catalyst has offices in Cambridge, MA and Palo Alto, CA. For more information, visit: www.generalcatalyst.com.