The National Council Resource Center for Primary Care and Behavioral Health Collaboration builds on more than six years of work in this area and serves as a valuable source for information and practical resources for providers, policymakers, and community stakeholders working to provide primary and mental healthcare across delivery systems. As interest and support for integrated primary and behavioral health grows, providers need access to clinical, organizational, and financial tools.
*New* Integrated Care: Outcomes and Evaluation
A flurry of recent National Council List Serve dialogue focused on how to train existing CMHC staff to work in primary care settings. The National Council will be holding a three part webinar series on "Training CMHC Staff to Work in Primary Care." The third webinar, "Warm Handoffs" will be held on March 25th at 1:00 p.m. EST. Register now for "Warm Handoffs." Click here for the links to the first two webinars in this series: Part 1: Getting Started-On-the-Job-Training and Preparing Behavioral Health Staff to Work in Primary Care and Part 2: Relationships: The Behavioral Health Consultant, Primary Care Physician, and Psychiatrist.
*New* Medical Care Management for Community Mental Health Settings
The study titled, “A randomized trial of medical care management for community mental health settings: The Primary Care Access, Referral, and Evaluation (PCARE) study,” was published in the Dec. 15 online edition of The American Journal of Psychiatry. It was funded by a grant from the National Institute of Mental Health of the National Institutes of Health
*New* USPSTF Recommends Screening Adults for Depression in Clinics with Staff Support
The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) has issued a new recommendation on routine screening of adults for depression. USPSTF recommends routine screening for depression among adults in clinical practices that have systems in place to assure accurate diagnosis, effective treatment, and follow-up.
HHS Secretary Sebelius Delivers Remarks on Integration of Mental and Physical Health Services at National Council Member Organization
Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius recently delivered remarks at Sheppard-Pratt Health System in Maryland. Much of her speech was in support of integrated care programs such as the SAMHSA co-location grant that received a 100% increase in funding in the recently passed omnibus spending bill:
“We know that these integrated care models can be especially effective when they combine behavioral and physical health conditions. That’s because mental illnesses and substance use disorders usually go hand in hand with other physical conditions. We know that the sicker you are, the more likely you are to be depressed: forty percent of older patients with advanced heart failure have major depression. And we also know that when physical and mental health problems come together, they usually make each other worse. For example, the cost of treating a patient a medical problem and comorbid psychiatric condition is twice as high as the cost for a patient with the medical condition alone.
“And we also need to make integration work the other way. We know that barely half of public mental health centers have the capacity to provide medical treatment for physical health problems either onsite or through referral. We need to do better, and SAMHSA is currently administering a grant program designed to figure out how we can incorporate primary care services into these community behavioral health centers.”
The full text of Secretary Sebelius’ remarks is available online at http://www.hhs.gov/secretary/speeches/index.html
Learning Communities
If you are participating in one of the National Council's Primary Care and Behavioral Health Learning Community, join your group colleagues online to dialogue, share resources and best practices, and get expert consultation on providing comprehensive healthcare to persons with mental illness and substance use disorders.
The Person-Centered Healthcare Home
New report calls for creating a medical home for people with serious mental illnesses by introducing general healthcare capacity within mental health organizations or by nurturing seamless partnerships between mental health and primary care providers.
Integration and Public Policy
Visit the Collaborative Care section of the National Council's Policy Action Center for up-to-date policy information and resources on primary and behavioral health integration.
In The News
Care Management Improves Physical Health of Patients with Mental Illness
December 2009 - Connecting mental health patients with care managers responsible for coordinating their health care significantly improves their overall health and wellbeing, according to a study by Emory University public health researchers. Study findings suggest that care management is a promising approach for improving quality and outcomes of medical care for patients with serious mental illnesses.
A new article in Social Work Today addresses the topic of integrated health and provides advice for Social Works who want to serve in integrated settings.
Examples of Primary Care and Behavioral Healthcare Integration
Community behavioral health organizations and community health centers across the United States share their experiences in behavioral health and primary care integration, collaboration, and colocation, revealing what works and what doesn't.
