TY - JOUR
KW - integrated behavioral health
KW - co-location
KW - integrated care
AU - B. M. Lombardi
AU - L. S. Zerden
AU - E. L. Richman
A1 - 
AB - Social workers are increasingly working in primary care clinics that provide Integrated Behavioral Healthcare (IBH) in which a patient's physical, behavioral, and social determinants of health are addressed on a collaborative team. Co-location, where care is housed in the same physical space, is a key element of IBH. Yet, little is known about the rate of social workers co-located with primary care physicians (PCPs). To identify national rates of social worker co-location, data were drawn from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES; n = 232,021 social workers, n = 380,690 PCPs). Practice addresses were geocoded and straight-line distances between practice locations of social workers and PCPs were calculated. More than 26% of social workers were co-located with a PCP. However, in rural settings only 21% were co-located (p < .001). Co-location also varied by PCP practice size, specialty, and state. This study serves as a benchmark of the growth of IBH and continued monitoring of co-location is needed to ensure social work workforce planning and training are aligned with changing models of care. Further, identifying mechanisms to support social work education, current providers, and health systems to increase IBH implementation is greatly needed.
AD - School of Social Work, University of Pittsburgh , Pittsburgh , PA , USA.; School of Social Work, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , Chapel Hill , NC , USA.; Cecil G. Shep's Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill , Chapel Hill , NC , USA.
BT - Social work in health care
C5 - Education & Workforce
CP - 9
CY - United States
DO - 10.1080/00981389.2019.1659907
IS - 9
JF - Social work in health care
LA - eng
M1 - Journal Article
N2 - Social workers are increasingly working in primary care clinics that provide Integrated Behavioral Healthcare (IBH) in which a patient's physical, behavioral, and social determinants of health are addressed on a collaborative team. Co-location, where care is housed in the same physical space, is a key element of IBH. Yet, little is known about the rate of social workers co-located with primary care physicians (PCPs). To identify national rates of social worker co-location, data were drawn from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS) National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES; n = 232,021 social workers, n = 380,690 PCPs). Practice addresses were geocoded and straight-line distances between practice locations of social workers and PCPs were calculated. More than 26% of social workers were co-located with a PCP. However, in rural settings only 21% were co-located (p < .001). Co-location also varied by PCP practice size, specialty, and state. This study serves as a benchmark of the growth of IBH and continued monitoring of co-location is needed to ensure social work workforce planning and training are aligned with changing models of care. Further, identifying mechanisms to support social work education, current providers, and health systems to increase IBH implementation is greatly needed.
PP - United States
PY - 2019
SN - 1541-034X; 0098-1389
SP - 885
EP - 898
EP - 
T1 - Where are social workers co-located with primary care physicians?
T2 - Social work in health care
TI - Where are social workers co-located with primary care physicians?
U1 - Education & Workforce
U2 - 31549928
U3 - 10.1080/00981389.2019.1659907
VL - 58
VO - 1541-034X; 0098-1389
Y1 - 2019
Y2 - Oct
ER -