Why integrated care

Integrated care models combine physical health care with mental health and substance use care. These models aim to improve whole-person health and encourage earlier identification and intervention for behavioral health conditions through coordinated care carried out by a multidisciplinary team. When primary care clinics use integrated care strategies, far more people are screened, detected, and treated for behavioral health conditions.  

Integrated care models can address many of the barriers to care faced by Oklahomans today, such as lack of practitioner availability and difficulties finding a valid entry point to care.  

Integrated care is also a powerful way to decrease stigma around mental illness and substance use — when patients are screened for these conditions in the same way they would have their blood pressure checked at a doctor’s visit, it reinforces the idea that mental health is health.

Many people with mental health and substance use conditions are more likely to visit a primary care provider within a given year than they are to seek out specialty mental health care on their own, making primary care an important entry point for behavioral health care.

Integrating behavioral health care into primary care can improve health outcomes by:  

• Increasing the reach of mental health resources to more patients receiving care in a variety of health care settings

• Expanding early identification and prevention services

• Integrating cohesive treatments for mental and physical health conditions

• Improving coordination between primary care providers and behavioral health specialists, allowing for more cohesive transition of care following inpatient stays and better informed care through the combined expertise of PCPs and specialists

• Addressing health behaviors such as compliance with treatment recommendations, exercise and diet

• And reducing overall health care costs for both behavioral and physical health concerns by avoiding hospital admissions and readmissions, reducing emergency room visits, and preventing the need for costly procedures