Integrating Behavioral Health and Primary Care

Osteopathic family physicians embody the philosophy of whole-person care, including using a biopsychosocial approach to incorporate mental health into patient care. The creation of the Behavioral Health Integration Collaborative increased support for a system-level adoption of whole-person care in primary care settings. With the increase in both mental health symptoms and diagnoses among Americans, and the increasing support for integrated physical and behavioral healthcare in the primary care setting, this paper shares various approaches, as well as challenges to, adapting integrated care in the primary care office. This includes reviewing best practices for implementing this care approach. The two leading models for integrated care are the Primary Care Behavioral Health (PCBH) model and Collaborative Care model (CoCM). Both models include clinically embedding licensed mental health professionals into the primary care setting, thus increasing access to colleagues with this specialized approach. The PCBH model utilizes a warm hand-off approach, resulting in a collaboration between physician and mental health provider in the care of the patient. The CoCM focuses on a registry of patients who are overseen by a behavioral health manager with treatment decisions guided by a consulting psychiatrist. Blended models are also emerging to better suit the needs for different practices and the patient populations they serve. Challenges to full implementation include acquiring buy-in from practice leadership, hiring appropriately trained mental health providers, and defining billing and coding procedures.