Making the Affordable Care Act Affordable

Presenters:Susan Blue, ACSW, Community Services Group

Carmen Klingensmith, Community Services GroupClaire Hornberger, LCSW, TrueNorth Wellness Services

Mary McGrath, MSW, TrueNorth Wellness ServicesBarbara Terrill-Kettering, Psy.D., Community Services Group

• Brief overview of “models” and toolkits that

will help BH providers survive and thrive in this ACA environment.

• Identify and apply strategies your organization may adopt and polish.

• Understand the “packaging” your organization can maximize.

Learning Objectives

Integrated care

TrueNorth Wellness Services – efforts in working with primary care providers

Community Services Group – efforts of wellness initiatives with employees

Introduction

“Obamacare” Passed March 23, 2010 Most significant regulatory change for the US

healthcare system since Medicaid and Medicare Goals:

Increasing quality and affordability of health insurance

Lowering the uninsured rate by expanding public and private insurance coverage

Reducing the costs of healthcare coverage for individuals and government

The Affordable Care Act (Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act)

Has forced a conversation about change, new

service models, and controlling costs Health Homes Accountable Care Organizations Patient Centered Medical Homes Focused conversation on integration of

behavioral health and general medicine Small number of individuals account for largest

percentage of costs Behavioral health conditions – present in other high

cost, chronic health conditions

Affordable Care Act

Sea change for behavioral health providers Craft a role with integration – value added

Consumer/Patient experience – behavior change Financial bottom line – reduction of ED visits

and hospital admissions and readmissions Expand the reach of general healthcare beyond

the doctor’s office and hospital into consumer/patient’s home and community

Integration

Behavioral Health Providers have expertise in

approaches that are valuable and necessary to: A partnership with general medicine in order to improve

the health of our consumers/patients Patient Centered Care and Patient Engagement Community partnerships Evidenced based care that changes behavior and reduces

utilization of services while improving health outcomes: Motivational interviewing Trauma focused therapy Cognitive behavioral therapy Dialectical behavioral therapy

Expertise of Behavioral Health Providers

Helping people change their behavior is fundamental

to achieving better and more cost effective outcomes Jeffrey Brenner - MacArthur Genius and primary care

physician explained that his model relied heavily on the work of behavioral health pioneers when he said, “Actually behavioral health is 30 years ahead of us. I hope primary care can learn from behavioral health. When psychiatric care was deinstitutionalized, behavioral health did heroic work to figure out how to deliver better care at lower cost and evolved some creative models.”

Clearly we have expertise to offer

Goal of Integrated Care – Population Health

We must focus on Mental as well as Physical Wellness

to fully integrate healthcare Our workshop will review several strategies for BH

providers to include in their tool kit as they prepare to enter the world of integrated healthcare in whatever service model exists in their community. TrueNorth Wellness Services – clinical services focus

IMPACT model Lifestyle Management

Community Services Group – employee focus Trauma Informed Care principles and therapy Technology – My Strength

Full Integration

Research indicates early exposure to trauma can

be correlated to behavioral health and substance abuse/addiction issues

Organizations that fail to understand the relevance of trauma on health issues are not likely to experience positive outcomes with individuals they serve and will have difficulty maintaining a healthy workforce

There are various options available to providers for addressing trauma with individuals in service and with a workforce

Trauma Informed Care

10% of patients in primary care experience

depression People with depression have 50-100% higher health

care costs Only 50% of people with depression are treated Many people prefer treatment by their PCP and PCPs

prescribe the majority of antidepressants Treating both physical and behavioral health

achieves better results Many physical symptoms that send patients to their

PCP have behavioral health roots

Integrated Health – Why Behavioral Health Fits into

Primary Care

Stepped program

Assessment and education Behavioral activation/pleasant events

scheduling AND

Antidepressant medication OR problem-solving treatment

Maintenance and relapse prevention plan for patients in remission

IMPACT model – Improving Mood Promoting Access to Collaborative Treatment

Initial treatments are rarely sufficient PHQ-9 used at every visit Outreach to patients who do not attend Can be adapted to and effective in a wide range of health

care settings Effective teamwork is essential Behavioral health staff need the following skills

Strong engagement skills, solution focused, behavioral activation, ability to not engage in intensive therapy, motivational interviewing, problem solving

IMPACT implementation center http://impact-uw.org/about/implementation.html

IMPACT Model

Primary care, mental health, social services,

community based services – we all operate in silos

Working under the same roof is not enough Effective collaboration takes a lot of work Successful integration requires:

Clinical, operational, and financial integration A shared workflow and shared, measurable

goals

Collaboration is Not a Natural State!

A supportive PCP who “owns” the program and

is able to “sell” it to the patient A private workspace for behavioral health staff Clearly defined workflows Everyone in the clinic needs to know about the

program and be able to sell it Effective communication!

Needed to Succeed:

We are guests in their house We must learn their culture We must speak their language Allow for “local” leadership PCP and support staff champions are critical Behavioral health needs to establish TRUST

with the PCP BH personality is as important as credentials Review the finances first!

Lessons learned one year in:

The “magic ingredient” of helping patients make

positive behavioral changes to support better health There are 4 principles of MI:

Express empathy, avoid arguing Develop discrepancy Roll with resistance Support self sufficiency

The basic process: Look for signs of readiness for change Strengthen commitment to change Develop and negotiate a change plan Proceed at the person or organization’s pace

Motivational Interviewing

Motivational Interviewing: Following the basic process

Motivational interviewing is NOT what you were already doing.

When you hear yourself or your staff reflecting “we already do that”. This is nothing new, be wary.

We are all CHANGE AVERSE!

Use EARS as a clinical and administrative skill:

ElaborateAffirm

ReflectSummarize

Or, forge ahead as an organization! May involve recruiting new & different people who share your vision of change or starting a new “division” of your organization

Motivational Interviewing:

Health care costs continue to increase

Focusing on work place wellness with a trauma informed perspective supports health behavior change and impacts health care costs

Workplace Wellness

In an attempt to improve health literacy and normalize accessing BH

services, CSG has crafted an internal EAP program with an updated menu of services within a trauma informed focus

Trauma Informed education and certification is a focus for EAP clinicians

Non-therapists are being identified and trained in crisis management skills to provide emergency response

CSG has made the confidential online resource and screening tool “My Strength” available to all staff to use as needed

CSG provides Mental Health First Aid classes to educate non-clinician participants about managing crisis or someone’s developing behavioral health issue

Other strategies include tobacco cessation and a workplace wellness initiative to encourage healthful eating and increased physical activity

CSG strategies for employees’ physical and

behavioral health

Nimble staff and organization Strengths focused Flexible Results oriented Solution focused

THRIVING IN THE ACA ENVIRONMENT “THE HOW TO’s”:

Important Characteristics to Nurture:

Engagement System perspective System and street “savvy” with non-compliant

patients Motivational interviewing Navigating through obstacles Trauma informed care

Skills/Expertise

Evidence based practices Become indispensable to the physical health providers Demonstrate cost structure advantage Demonstrate positive patient outcomes Solve their system issues/challenges Focus on what works Translate patient communications and behaviors to

physical health providers Join with physical health providers but differentiate

ourselves Embrace continuing education

Must Do

Population health management Real outcomes that translate into healthier

population at lower cost Aging demographic and growing health care

needs of aging populations How to meet these demands without

increased costs?

Future Considerations

Susan emphasized that we can navigate the “sea change”

that accompanies the ACA from a provider and employer perspective.

Carmen enlightened us about the power of adopting trauma informed care as a bedrock philosophy of all we do.

Barbara described CSG’s robust workplace wellness services and how they incorporate trauma informed care to improve employee health & reduce healthcare costs.

Claire shared the IMPACT model for depression care in a primary care setting as well as the “system savvy” BH providers must demonstrate to make these collaborations successful.

WRAP UPTo tie together the major points/learning from this

presentation:

I highlighted Motivational interviewing as a key

skill to master to create behavior change in the clinical work of integrated care and lifestyle management as well as a central component of the organizational redesign and rebranding BH providers must do to thrive in this ACA world.

Hopefully, we have met the learning objectives for this workshop and shared the philosophies, skill sets and adaptive characteristics each of our organizations must embrace to go beyond “surviving” to THRIVE in an ACA environment.

Wrap Up (cont.)

Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE Study/1995-1997 )

Collaborative effort between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Kaiser Permanente’s Health Appraisal Clinic, San Diego, California

Resources to acknowledge: National Council’s learning communities SAMHSA SAMHSA-HRSA (Health Resources and Services

Administration) Center for Integrated Health Solutions (CIHS)

Sara Collins, PH.D, The Commonwealth Fund

References & Resources

Thank you for this

opportunity to tell our story today!

THE END