Screenings, early interventions and a community adaptation model to address a behavioral health crisis

More than four in 10 (46%) of Americans will meet the criteria for a diagnosable mental health condition in their lifetimes, and half of those people develop conditions by the age of 14. More than half of adults (55%) with a mental illness receive no treatment, according to nonprofit Mental Health America.  

Demand for behavioral health surged in recent years as many people struggled to cope in overwhelming life situations — a pandemic, climate change, increasing political polarization, social inequality. While reacting to a public health emergency, medical practices also faced the need to revamp or expand their behavioral health offerings to address this increasing need.  

The 2022 MGMA Harwick Innovation Award recipient Natalia Szczgiel, MSHA, CMPE, OMC, will co-present alongside Malissa Becksvoort, a fellow director of operations at Corewell Health, on the topic of “Behavioral Health Screening in Healthcare and Beyond” at the 2023 Leaders Conference, October 22-25 in Nashville, Tenn.  

Their case study will explore building a standardized behavioral health screening infrastructure across 14 hospitals and more than 200 ambulatory sites for patients and employees.  

The infrastructure emphasizes a “whole-person healing approach” that incorporates behavioral health screening and early interventions into a medical system that can be adapted for wider community use. 

Corewell Health adapted suicidality protocols for the health setting to support workplace mental health using an employee peer-to-peer model, and then adapted their toolkit further to train staff and faculty at middle and high schools on life-saving suicide prevention procedures for students in crisis. Participants of this session will hear all the details on making these expansions work across communities.  

Becksvoort and Szczygiel will also highlight using standard work, change management and a system dashboard to set expectations for team members and periodic auditing for continued improvement and compliance during the planning stages. 

Join this session to learn best practices for reimagining your behavioral health services to address the pressing need for care throughout the communities you serve.  

Register now for the 2023 Leaders Conference in Nashville, Tennessee, October 22-25 to:  

• Exercise your voice and expand your professional network 
• Join peer discussions and interactive sessions that build knowledge 
• Listen to mentors on the main stage as they share invaluable guidance for the next generation 
• Engage in exclusive experiences to provide an opportunity to refresh and reflect 
• Gain access to the leading edge of what other leaders are talking about. 

We hope to see YOU in October! 

Learn More 

• Blue envelopes and suicide prevention (MGMA Podcast) 
• “How medical practices are adapting to the surge in demand for behavioral health services” (MGMA Stat) 
• “A rural health clinic’s journey to behavioral health integration” (MGMA Connection) 
• “Laying the foundation for behavioral health integration” (MGMA Connection)