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Integrated Care: A Model of Service in Behavioral Health
This article is part of a quarterly series giving voice to the perspectives of individuals with lived experiences as they share their opinions on a particular topic. The authors of this column facilitated a focus group of their peers to inform this writing. The authors are provided with services by...
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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...
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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...
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Trauma and “Whole Person” Healthcare
Any effort to understand and treat co-occurring disorders cannot ignore the prevalence of trauma in the lives of those who are struggling with recovery from mental illness and addiction. A look at the trauma prevalence data in both general and behavioral health populations clearly makes the case....
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When the Therapist Comes to You: A Model Home Visiting Program for Seniors
Sarah is 95 years old and is determined to live out her days in the small New York City apartment she has called home for over 60 years. Her walls are covered with four generations of family photographs, and her shelves are filled with books and mementos of her work as a teacher and travels with...
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Addressing the Social Determinants of Health in Program, Payment, and Policy: Extrapolating the Triple Aim for Population Health
There is much more to being healthy than traditional health care. In fact, “health care” is a surprisingly minor factor in health and the prevention of premature death, just 10 percent. Social circumstances, environmental exposures, genetic predisposition, and personal behavior combined...
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Preparing the New Behavioral Health Workforce
The Affordable Care Act marked a national healthcare reform effort, and within that context, New York State, led by Governor Cuomo’s Medicaid Redesign Team, is undergoing a substantial shift in publicly funded physical and behavioral healthcare. The authors have been deeply involved in the...
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Meeting the Challenges of Healthcare Reform: Preparing the Workforce for Transformational Practice Change
There has been a tremendous amount of discussion associated with workforce retraining since the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Since its inception, it has been clear that the ACA establishes a new framework for health care from nearly universal insurance coverage to the...
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Care Management Model for Integrated Settings
The Care Management model in an integrated health care setting is rapidly evolving and expanding. Although there have been many improvements in coordination of health care, barriers persist for patients and medical providers which diminish the quality of care being delivered. Primary health care...
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Building an Integrated Healthcare System: Blending Public Health and Prevention Models
The very first time I ever thought about physical and behavioral healthcare together was when I heard of a psychiatrist who wanted to do complete blood chemistry before prescribing medication to new patients within a mental health clinic, a unique situation some 20 years ago. Clearly, this...
