New Report Highlights Evidence for Integrated Care - Collaborative Care Model

Apr 07, 2016

ARLINGTON, Va. – Today the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine (APM) jointly released a report that reviews the current scientific evidence for integrated care, specifically the Collaborative Care Model, and provides recommendations for advancing use of the model.

Integrated care refers to programs in which mental health care is delivered in primary care settings. Collaborative Care is a specific type of integrated care involving a multidisciplinary team, led by a primary care provider, providing scientifically proven treatments and focusing on patient outcomes. Significant research over the past three decades has proven the Collaborative Care Model to be effective.

“The evidence is clear that integrated care, and the Collaborative Care model in particular, can contribute to more effective care and better outcomes for patients with mental illness who are going to their primary care physicians for treatment,” said APA President Renée Binder, M.D. “This report will help standardize educational materials and effective implementation of the Collaborative Care Model.”

In the Collaborative Care Model, in addition to the primary care provider, the multidisciplinary team includes care managers, psychiatrists, and frequently other mental health professionals. The team shares roles and tasks, and together the team is responsible for their patient’s health outcomes. One essential element of Collaborative Care is having a psychiatrist provide consultation to a care manager who coordinates with patients and a primary care doctor.

The report, “Dissemination of Integrated Care within Adult Primary Care Settings: The Collaborative Care Model,” highlights five successful examples of implementation of Collaborative Care: Washington State Mental Health Integration Program (MHIP); Depression Initiative Across Minnesota, Offering a New Direction (DIAMOND); Re-Engineering Systems of Primary Care Treatment of PTSD and Depression in the Military (RESPECT-MIL); Veterans Health Administration; and University of California Davis Health System. The experiences in these communities provide valuable lessons for health systems working toward quality, evidence-based, integrated care solutions.

“The five programs featured in the report provide real-world examples of programs successfully adapting the Collaborative Care Model to meet their specific needs and offer other communities and programs valuable lessons-learned,” said APM President Steve Epstein, M.D.

The American Psychiatric Association is a national medical specialty society whose more than 36,000 physician members specialize in the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and research of mental illnesses, including substance use disorders. Visit the APA at www.psychiatry.org.

The Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine represents psychiatrists dedicated to the advancement of medical science, education, and health care for persons with comorbid psychiatric and general medical conditions and provides national and international leadership in the furtherance of those goals. Visit APM at www.apm.org.

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