Integrating primary medical care into mental health services: The Whole Health Program

Nationally, studies have documented that people living with serious mental illnesses are dying 25 years earlier than the rest of the population, in large part due to unmanaged physical health conditions.The Whole Health Program (funded by SAMHSA) is a collaborative effort by CODAC Behavioral Health Services and El Rio Community Health Center that established an integrated, co-located system of care that improves the physical health status of adults with serious mental illnesses. Whole Health uses the Person-Centered Healthcare Home Model to deliver integrated mental health, medical and wellness services. Staff from both organizations comprise a unified team to provide care for individuals, inclusive of prevention and wellness promotion, treatment and crisis interventions across behavioral, physical health and other service provider systems. Evidence Based Practices used by CODAC includes Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment; Dialectical Behavior Therapy; and Seeking Safety treatment.Over 650 patients are enrolled in Whole Health and have received over 41,000 service visits. This presentation will discuss 1)implementation issues (barriers and resolutions) such as change in medical scope of work, changes in licensures for medical services and Tele-pharmacy, integration of Electronic Health Records, and development of new wellness programming; 2)patient related issues such as acceptability of new services, changing primary health care providers, complexity of medical issues, confidentiality and consumer involvement; 3)ongoing programmatic issues such as staffing, staff turnover, and data collection; and 4)outcomes such as service utilization, and changes in health outcomes over time (blood pressure, weight, height, waist circumference, plasma glucose, HgBA1c, Cholesterol, and triglycerides).