24/7 Mental Health Crisis Support
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(877) 882-5122

Adult & Child Mental Health & Medical Concerns Support Information
(877) 882-5122

Integrated Care

Adults who experience Serious Mental Illness die, on average, 25 years younger than the rest of the US population; primarily due to ineffectively managed chronic disease like diabetes, Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), or obesity.

In response to this alarming trend, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) begin their 10 by 10 wellness campaign to reduce this early mortality statistic by 10 years, over the next 10 years.

In 2008, Adult and Child Health conducted an internal audit to find that 78 percent of our adult consumers had a co-occurring mental illness and serious health concern. Adult and Child Health partnered with a local Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) and was awarded a four-year SAMHSA grant to develop an integrated care program in our service line.

Since that project began, Adult and Child Health treated over 480 unique consumers with co-occurring serious mental illness and chronic disease through Heartfelt Health Alliance – our integrated care clinic.

Integrated care has saved countless lives through early identification of an unknown chronic disease, improvement management of known illnesses, and the adoption of major lifestyle changes like exercise, diet, and tobacco cessation.

Integrated care has saved significant tax dollars. Through a recent MDWise study, the per member per month cost of combined medical and behavioral health care dropped by roughly 70 percent among high cost individuals once they were engaged in integrated care services.

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.