Professional Practices

Two Integrated Care Workforce Resources

Evidence suggests that behavioral health integration—often referred to as collaborative care, integrated primary care, or integrated care—leads to improved care and reduced costs.^1-4

The Guidebook and Literature Review are navigable PDFs developed by the AHRQ Academy team that describe how practices can successfully integrate care. Readers can access sections of the document by using the PDF bookmarks on the left side of each document or by using the top navigation on every page of each document.

A Guidebook of Professional Practices for Behavioral Health and Primary Care Integration: Observations From Exemplary Sites (PDF 1.31 MB)

This Guidebook identifies the key professional practices prominent among exemplary integrated primary care organizations, with the goal of helping other sites integrate care more effectively. Findings are organized into two categories: Organization-Level Professional Practices, and Interpersonal and Individual Professional Practices.

Provider- and Practice-Level Competencies for Integrated Behavioral Health in Primary Care: A Literature Review (PDF 0.61 MB)

This Literature Review highlights a comprehensive set of competencies, practices, providers, and staff needed to advance integration efforts and provide comprehensive care to improve patient outcomes. Competencies are organized into Provider and Staff Competencies and Practice-Level Competencies.

References

Kwan B, Nease D Jr. The state of the evidence for integrated behavioral health in primary care. In: Talen MR, Burke Valeras A, eds. Integrated behavioral health in primary care. New York: Springer; 2013. p. 65-98.
Bauer AM, Azzone V, Goldman HH, et al. Implementation of collaborative depression management at community-based primary care clinics: an evaluation. Psychiatr Serv 2011 Sep;62(9):1047-53. http://ps.psychiatryonline.org/doi/full/10.1176/ps.62.9.pss6209_1047. Accessed March 22, 2017.
Kroenke K, Taylor-Vaisey A, Dietrich AJ, et al. Interventions to improve provider diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders in primary care: a critical review of the literature. Psychosomatics 2000 Jan-Feb;41(1):39-52. PMID: 10665267
Unützer J, Katon WJ, Fan M-Y, et al. Long-term cost effects of collaborative care for late-life depression. Am J Manag Care 2008 Feb;14(2):95-100. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3810022/. Accessed March 22, 2017.