Title

Power on: The rapid transition of a large interdisciplinary behavioral health department to telemental health during the COVID-19 pandemic

UMMS Affiliation

Tan Chingfen Graduate School of Nursing

Publication Date

2022-02-24

Document Type

Article

Disciplines

Behavioral Medicine | Health Services Administration | Infectious Disease | Mental and Social Health | Psychiatry | Psychiatry and Psychology | Telemedicine | Virus Diseases

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a rapid transition to telemental health (TMH) for behavioral health services in the behavioral health department of a large integrated primary care organization. Although the COVID-19 pandemic was the initial trigger for rapid organizational change, systems were developed with a focus on longer term scalability and sustainability.

Methods: This paper discusses the process of organizational change within our healthcare delivery system using the Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations, and Results (SOAR) framework. Within this framework a structured mixed methods survey of 38 clinicians representing 5 different disciplines was conducted. Internal and survey data were analyzed to evaluate and guide the iterative change process.

Results: The majority of BH clinicians reported that they were as or more effective with TMH. The transition to TMH in our organization resulted in increased access to care, with a 10.3% increase in BH visit completions. The transition to TMH may benefit clinician work-life balance, but requires resources to support clinical, technological, and communication/teamwork changes.

Implications/conclusions: TMH is a feasible treatment modality for integrated care settings. It is cost-effective and well-accepted by clinicians. The SOAR framework can be used to guide rapid organizational change and ongoing QI processes.

Keywords

Behavioral health, COVID-19, Integrated care, Organizational change, SOAR analysis, Telehealth, Telemental health

DOI of Published Version

10.1016/j.xjep.2022.100506

Source

Harding SL, Eyllon M, Twigden A, Hogan A, Barry D, Mirsky JE, Barnes B, Nordberg S. Power on: The rapid transition of a large interdisciplinary behavioral health department to telemental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. J Interprof Educ Pract. 2022 Jun;27:100506. doi: 10.1016/j.xjep.2022.100506. Epub 2022 Feb 24. PMID: 35229056; PMCID: PMC8866964. Link to article on publisher's site

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Journal of interprofessional education and practice

Related Resources

Link to Article in PubMed

PubMed ID

35229056

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