Personally, I always call my pdoc before I go. That gives him the chance to let the ER staff know I'm coming and he can give med orders before I get there. Of course, that may not apply if your pdoc is not on staff at your hospital. He prefers I call him because he likes to know when I'm going in. If it is during the day, he has me come by his office first so he can admit me directly to the unit and I don't have to go through the ER. (In Texas -- or maybe its just that hospital, can't remember--a patient has to have been seen by a doctor within 48 hours of admission or they have to go through the ER to be cleared). He's even met me outside the unit to bypass the ER. It isn't that the ER is horrible; they're actually very good and quite used to handling psych admissions. But it's just a longer process through the ER.

If you can't or don't call your pdoc, just go directly to the hospital where you will be admitted. Just tell them you are there for admission to their psych unit and they'll handle it from there.