Archive for the ‘Serious Mental Illness (SMI)’ Category

Understanding and Detecting the Signs of Serious Mental Illness and Suicidal Ideation

Serious mental illness and suicidal ideation are two of the largest problems in American healthcare today. In fact, while one-in-five American adults have any mental illness, approximately 1 in 20 adults in the U.S. are affected by serious mental illness, or a mental illness that significantly...

Helping Families Cope with Serious Mental Illness: Maternal vs Social Work Instincts

I am a Social Worker. I am also a mom of an adult child with SMI, specifically bi-polar disorder. My child is 23 and I pray that she welcomes God into her life. That’s the mom in me talking. As a social worker, I want her to get a job, find a great partner who will love her, and become as...

St. Francis Friends of the Poor’s Serious Mental Illness Programs in the Community

Picture this; you wake up on a therapeutic mattress and push aside your shades to catch a glimpse of the city’s hustle and bustle. Next, you reach into your mini fridge for a bottle of water and begin your day thereafter. You walk downstairs, locking your private room behind you, and check out...

Addressing the Intersection between Severe Mental Illness and Homelessness

Services for the UnderServed (S:US) is one the largest community-based health and human services organizations in New York State that works intentionally daily to right societal imbalances by providing comprehensive and culturally responsive services. We provide services to people living with...

WellLife Network’s Mental Health Residential Services: Creating Exceptional Living Experiences for Individuals with Serious Mental Illness

In today's world, individuals experiencing severe mental illness (SMI) face numerous challenges. Safe and nurturing residential services are crucial components for successful well-being, along with essential support structures necessary for recovery. WellLife Network's highly acclaimed housing...

Substance Use Disorders: Frequency and Treatment for People with Serious Mental Illness

Throughout its history, America has attempted to punish substance users as a means to encourage their abstinence. These attempts have included imprisonment, fines, and forced rehabilitation programs, often sentenced at a higher rate to people of color (Volkow, 2023). Punishments like these often...

Reimagining Integrated Care: Why Social Interventions are Vital in Providing Support for People with Serious Mental Illness

The concept of “integrated healthcare” has been regarded as an optimal treatment approach for individuals experiencing co-occurring mental and physical illnesses. Twenty years ago, Fountain House – the most widely replicated evidence-based community model for people living with mental illness...

The Behavioral Health Sector and Physical Health Services Models

Individuals with serious mental illness (SMI) are known to have significant co-morbid medical conditions and as such greater medical costs though only a tiny fraction of that overall costs can be attributed directly to mental health services.1 It is well established that approximately 50% of total...

The Critical Role of Relationships in Integrated Health Care Delivery

Integrated care models are now increasingly being adopted across all medical settings, including behavioral health. Their potential to help health care systems attain the triple aim of improving service quality, promoting population health and reducing costs has led policy makers to incentivize...

An Introduction to Reimbursement and Coding for Psychiatric Collaborative Care Management Services

Integrated care has been recognized as a valuable tool for enhancing the overall health of individuals with serious and persistent mental illness (SPMI) by improving access to care and treatment for co-morbid medical conditions often experienced by individuals with SPMI. Similar benefits are also...