Through the years, research has provided a greater understanding of mental health, and what is needed for it has become more prevalent. There’s no longer quite the stigma attached to mental health, especially considering how it can affect physical health as well. Care coordination for serious mental illness is an important part of providing individuals with the best possible care. By coordinating services, care providers can ensure that each patient receives the right treatment at the right time.
When care coordinators are involved in a patient's care plan, they act as a bridge between different healthcare providers and help to ensure that a comprehensive approach to treating severe mental illnesses is taken. Read ahead to find out more about care coordination for mental health and how it can benefit patients and healthcare provider networks alike.
What Is Care Coordination in Mental Health?
Care coordination for mental illness is similar to what is used for physical healthcare. The process involves bringing mental health provider networks together to create an integrated, comprehensive plan to help people manage their mental health needs. The overall goal is to provide timely access to the right services and support at the right time for each individual's unique situation. Its focus is on communication and collaboration between mental health professionals and members of the mental health team. This can include mental health providers, primary care providers, psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers, and work with a community mental health center.
Accountable care organizations work to ensure that behavioral health services are coordinated through their healthcare provider network of public or private hospitals to meet all of the individual's mental illness needs effectively and efficiently, using such services as medication management, therapy and counseling, mental health education, and support groups.
The Care Coordination Mental Health Model
In such a care coordination model, the mental health providers involved work together to identify needs, develop plans of care, and monitor progress. Mental health professionals also provide resources to individuals and their families so they can access the healthcare they need for serious mental illness. Care coordinators and community-based health professionals tailor care plans to meet the unique mental health needs of each individual.
Accessibility in Mental Illness Care Coordination
As mental healthcare evolves, care coordination is becoming increasingly important to ensure access to the right mental health systems. By working together, diverse healthcare providers involved in social and personal recovery can ensure that mental healthcare offers geographical and financial accessibility for all individuals.
Care Coordination and its Benefits to Mental Health Services
Care coordinators and accountable care organizations provide support and resources to patients so that they understand their condition better and have access to appropriate treatments and therapies. By having a dedicated coordinator for mental health, patients can receive more personalized attention from the team of allied health professionals involved in their treatment. This helps prevent delays or a lack of communication that can lead to gaps in care. They’re also able to identify any areas that need to be addressed and help connect patients with the right resources in a timely manner.
Care coordination for severe mental illness can reduce the costs associated with providing care. By streamlining services, individual health professionals can avoid unnecessary treatments or tests, ultimately saving money while still providing individuals with quality care and social services.
Overall, investing in care coordination for mental illness is an important part of ensuring that individuals receive the best possible care and achieve long-term recovery from their conditions. Effective care coordination allows providers to work together toward achieving positive outcomes for patients.
Types of Mental Health Care Coordination
A cross-disciplinary approach through coordinated care allows mental health providers to better provide comprehensive and quality care for patients. The types of behavioral health services include:
Comprehensive Care Coordination for Mental Health
This type of mental health coordination involves a comprehensive assessment of the mental health needs of an individual and identifies services that are needed to meet those needs. The care coordinator will then develop a plan detailing how mental health services will be provided and monitored over time.
Monitoring Care with Primary Care Providers
This involves oversight and monitoring of mental illness services to ensure that the care is appropriate and effective. Care coordinator teams may provide recommendations when mental health systems are not meeting the individual's needs.
The Role of Crisis Intervention
Crisis intervention involves providing immediate hospital and community healthcare services in response to a mental health crisis or mental distress. The care coordinator will work with the individual to develop an action plan and goal-oriented mental health interventions.
Follow-up Care for Severe Mental Health Disorders
Follow-ups in care coordination involve ensuring that mental health services are continued over time. Specialized care providers will monitor services, provide mental health education and resources, as well as support the individual in engaging in mental illness treatment.
Investing in Care Coordination To Advance Treatment for Mental Health Disorders
Care coordination has proven to be effective in improving outcomes for those with mental health disorders and should play a large role in the overall treatment plan with accountable care organizations and the healthcare provider networks formed around this care. Care coordination for severe mental health disorders can help ensure that individuals receive the quality of care they need while staying connected with formal mental healthcare networks such as hospitals providing psychiatric care, social services, and primary care for behavioral health services.
The benefits of care coordination for serious mental illness are clear, and investing in this type of care can have a positive impact on individuals’ overall well-being, providing individuals the best possible care with any unique mental health provider and ensuring positive outcomes. It should be included as a key component of coordinated healthcare pathways for health and social institutions.
How Forcura Helps with Care Coordination
At Forcura, we believe in helping our clients provide quality care by empowering them with tools that streamline communications and processes. Forcura’s platform helps more than half a million patients receive efficient, impactful healthcare each month, including services offered by behavioral health and mental health providers. Our partnership with more than 800 clients in 7,000 locations means that we are a trusted technology vendor providing effective workflow solutions for providers in home healthcare, hospice, rehabilitative therapy, and other facilities with existing healthcare provider networks. Let us make the care coordination process easier for you so that you can focus more on your patients and their well-being.
