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Preparing the Workforce to Improve Health and Wellness
Health disparities facing people served by the public mental health system are well known and remain a significant concern. In the 1990s, following recognition a 15-year loss of life for people served by the public mental health system, Peggy Swarbrick, formalized a holistic wellness dimension...
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Sleep Issues: An Opportunity for Integrated Care
Who should take the lead when issues of sleep problems come up? Is the sleep problem a physical or a behavioral health issue? If a client only has diabetes, there is no question that the lead in the integrated team needs to be the primary care provider (PCP) or endocrinologist. If a person only has...
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The Challenges of Integrated Health Care
One of the most talked about issues in both the behavioral health and medical field is the integration of behavioral and physical health services. In fact, SAMHSA has reworked their definition of recovery to include physical health: A process through which individuals improve their health and...
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The NYSPA Report: New Medicaid Restrictions on the Prescription of Benzodiazepines
Late last year, the New York State Medicaid Drug Utilization Review Board (DURB) recommended new protocols in connection with the prescribing of benzodiazepines under the Medicaid program. Benzodiazepines, a controlled substance, are a class of psychotropic medication used to reduce symptoms of...
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The Vital Role of Behavioral Health: Driving Better Health Outcomes by Integrating Services
Behavioral and physical healthcare in New York State are going through an unprecedented transformation. Medicaid redesign, implementation of a health benefit exchange, a transition from fee-for-service to managed behavioral healthcare, integration of behavioral health with primary healthcare,...
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Towards Seamless Integration: Advocating for Reform
Many people with serious mental illnesses have difficulty accessing primary care or do not feel comfortable in primary care settings, for a host of reasons. Often, they have experienced trauma, resulting in trust issues that impact their ability to form relationships with new providers. As a...
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Upgrading Skills in a Changing Mental Health Care Environment
As healthcare has changed over time, so too has the knowledge and expertise required of the practitioners. Computer literacy for electronic medical records, knowledge and application of research and evidence-based best practices, and patient satisfaction are but a few of the most recent...
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Behavioral Health Medical Homes: An Approach to Integrated Care
At first I was scared. I started skipping my appointments with my therapist and also Dr. Levy. I did not want to deal with it. But then my therapist and the doctor called me at home. They told me I was not alone, and they wanted to help me. That made all the difference. I came in. The doctor took...
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Integrated Care Models to Improve Health Outcomes and Reduce Poverty
FEGS Health & Human Services, in partnership with the Institute for Family Health (IFH), Healthfirst, Bronx-Lebanon Hospital, McSilver Institute of New York University, Mount Sinai Hospital, and Promoting Specialized Care and Health (PSCH) has been awarded a $925,000 grant from the Robin Hood...
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Integrated Health Care: A Life Saving Concept in Search of a Functional Reality
Integrated health care has become the new “buzz word” of an era ushered in by the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and its associated elements of health care reform. More than a buzz word it signifies an approach to medical care for high risk people faced by multiple life threatening...
