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NEWS

An Innovative Approach: Opening the State’s First “Tech-Enabled Behavioral Health Home”

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Adult and Child has received a grant from the Division of Mental Health and Addiction (DMHA) to open a Tech-Enabled Behavioral Health Home, the first in the State of Indiana to integrate a web-based platform in their program design. People with mental illness die, on average, 25 years younger than the rest of the population, often due to unmanaged chronic disease.  This pilot program addresses the poor mental and physical health outcomes among adults experiencing a serious mental illness and gives them a single “home” for their coordinated health care services.

 

“We are excited to expand our services, and improve support for adults’ total health needs,” said Allen Brown, CEO at Adult and Child Center. “In addition to supporting our goals of improved health care for our clients, this model is of particular interest to many of our community partners because it allows for one stop health care shopping, social support engagements, supported employment, housing access, and on-going quality care. We believe this pilot will demonstrate both improved health outcomes and significant cost savings in treating people with serious mental illness.”

 

 

About the Tech-Enabled Behavioral Health Home

The Tech-Enabled Behavioral Health Home is aimed at improving all health outcomes, while decreasing the costs of care. Adults who struggle with co-occurring mental and chronic physical health conditions comprise 5% of the population, but are estimated to use 50% of the available health care funding, due to their inability to effectively manage their illnesses.

 

Research demonstrates adults who experience a serious mental illness, when left to their own devices, do not effectively manage their health (mental or physical); often resulting in early mortalities and significantly increased costs of care (increased duration and frequency of inpatient stays and increased inappropriate health care expenses).

 

The primary guiding principles of this program are based upon the idea that mental illness is treatable; and that the role of A&C staff is to guide and support consumers in their recovery. Core elements of the Behavioral Health Home Pilot include disease self-management supports, patient focused delivery system design, clinical decision support, clinical information systems, and encouraging community linkages. Tech-Enabled Behavioral Health Home services will be available to adults who reside in Marion and Johnson counties, and who experience serious mental health and co-occurring primary care disorders.

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Sarah Miller, PMHNP-BC

Sarah Miller works with the addictions team, general psychiatry for adolescents and adults, and the competency restoration team. She is board-certified as a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner. Her specialties are working in addictions and with people who experience serious mental illness.

Miller graduated from Indiana University with a psychology degree and went back to school for nursing. She received her nursing degree from Indiana Wesleyan University and worked in a nursing home and also spent time working in a group home with adolescents. She received her master’s degree from Vanderbilt University.

She enjoys hanging out with her family and her two dogs, and going to sporting events.

Joanna Chambers, MD

Dr. Joanna Chambers is a psychiatrist who began seeing Adult & Child Health patients in November 2021. She graduated from Medical College of Georgia with her Doctorate of Medicine in 1996 and completed her residency in psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine. In addition to bringing a wealth of experience, she currently serves as an associate professor at Indiana University School of Medicine where she teaches Clinical Psychiatry. She is certified in Addiction Medicine and has a special interest in treating pregnant and postpartum women. She is President of the American Academy of Psychoanalysis and Dynamic Psychiatry Organization as well as a sitting member of many medical association boards. Recently, she has won the Residents’ Award for Teaching Excellence in 2020 from Indiana University and has received “Best Doctors Award” in 2010, 2011, and 2014. Dr. Chambers is incredibly active in the medical, academic, and research realms of medicine. She is currently accepting new patients on Wednesdays.