Poor mental health is a major public health issue that robs millions of people of their chance to lead healthy and productive lives. Depression alone doubles overall healthcare costs, worsens other medical conditions, and results in a staggering loss of productivity at work. In underserved rural areas in the WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) region, a severe shortage of mental health providers compounds these problems.
COMPASS is a collaborative care model designed to treat patients in primary care experiencing depression as well as diabetes and/or cardiovascular disease.
Native American people often experience disparities in mental health care and clinical outcomes associated with that care. The AIMS Center is working with the Western Oregon Service Unit of the Indian Health Service, the Warm Springs Reservation, the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, and George Fox University to implement Collaborative Care.
HRSA and NIMH contracted with the AIMS Center to train and support 11 nurse-led safety-net clinics throughout the US as they implemented Collaborative Care.
Stay Connected is a prevention intervention for older adults experiencing stress, loneliness, or depression symptoms due to increased isolation in the COVID-19 pandemic. Funding to test and implement the intervention has come from the Archstone Foundation, NIMH, and the City of Seattle.
The research project “Using Technology to Optimize Collaborative Care Management of Depression in Urban and Rural Cancer Centers” will develop, build, and test a web & mobile platform to enhance the implementation and fidelity of CoCM of depression for patients being treated at 2 urban and 2 rural cancer centers.
CHAMP (Collaborating to Heal Opioid Addiction and Mental Health in Primary Care) is a NIMH-funded research study testing whether Collaborative Care that addresses both mental health conditions and co-occurring opioid use disorder can improve patient lives.
TEAMcare was a randomized controlled trial designed to test Collaborative Care strategies in managing depression, diabetes, and coronary heart disease in primary care.
DIAMOND was a collaborative effort of 9 health plans, 25 medical groups, and over 80 primary care clinics in Minnesota to implement and study Collaborative Care for depression.
The New York State Collaborative Care Initiative helped primary care residents learn how to effectively practice team-based care to treat mental health conditions, a skill that has become increasingly important as integrated care becomes more widespread.