New York / PRWeb / September 22 , 2015 – Epstein Becker Green and EBG Advisors, as part of the Thought Leaders in Population Health Speaker Series, hosted a complimentary webinar titled The Challenges and Rewards of Integrating Behavioral Health into Primary Care. This session provided insights and strategies for optimizing behavioral health data inputs, starting with screening and assessments, incorporation of self-reported and exogenous data, identification and diagnosis of mental health problems in high-risk individuals with chronic comorbidities, and creation of coordinated care plans.
The webinar, scheduled for October 13, 2015, at 12:00 p.m. EDT, featured:
- Charles A. Coleman, PhD, Senior Sponsor of IBM’s Population Health Insights and Programs Management of IBM’s Healthcare Solutions Board.
- Steven R. Daviss, MD, DFAPA, Chief Medical Officer at M3 Information, LLC, a DC-based mobile mental health information technology company that developed the peer-reviewed multi-dimensional, patient-centered mental health screening tool, M3Clinician.
- Mark E. Lutes, Member of the Firm and Chair of Epstein Becker Green’s Board of Directors, as moderator.
Although mental health and substance abuse (behavioral health) services have historically been segregated from traditional medical care, its impact on patients’ well-being, physical health and cost-of-care has become increasingly critical to improving clinical quality outcomes while significantly decreasing financial costs by tens of billions of dollars. Drs. Daviss and Coleman discussed the advances in policy and practice regarding the integration of behavioral health with physical health, as well as some of the gaps in identifying, aggregating, and analyzing data critical to a more holistic and comprehensive view of the individual. In addition, the speakers:
- Identifed the clinical, legal, social, and financial impacts of behavioral health disorders on chronic medical conditions.
- Described the challenges involved in improving clinical and financial outcomes in patients with chronic medical conditions who also have behavioral health symptoms and/or conditions.
- Demonstrated the rewards for implementing new information technology applications and analysis for better clinical and financial outcomes for these specific populations.
The Thought Leaders in Population Health Speaker Series offered participants information and insight on how population health strategies are transforming the health care paradigm as the industry moves toward clinical integration and value-based purchasing.
“The Population Health Webinar Series offers a neutral platform for health care professionals and stakeholders to discuss best practices,” says Bob Atlas, MBA, President of EBG Advisors. “Advancing integration of physical and behavioral care, especially for people with chronic conditions, is essential to improve population health outcomes.”
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The Speakers
Charles Coleman, PhD, Senior Healthcare Executive, Population Health Management/Mental Health Programs and Policy, IBM
Dr. Coleman is focused primarily on integrating behavioral health and mental health with clinical applications in his role as Senior Sponsor of IBM’s Population Health Insights and Programs Management for IBM’s Healthcare Solutions Board. Inspired in part by the mission and mandates sponsored by Patrick Kennedy and The Kennedy Forum, Dr. Coleman works closely with clinicians and professionals who provide care to the mentally ill through applications of advanced information technology to help better diagnose and treat populations thus affected, specifically those afflicted with PTSD, depression, and anxiety. Dr. Coleman received his doctoral degree from SUNY Binghamton and is an author and lecturer on the subject of PTSD.
Steven R. Daviss, MD, DFAPA, Chief Medical Information Officer, M3 Information, LLC
Dr. Daviss is a physician double-boarded in psychiatry and psychosomatic medicine. He is the Chief Medical Information Officer at M3 Information LLC, a DC-based mobile mental health IT company that developed the peer-reviewed, multidimensional, patient-centered mental health screening tool, M3Clinician. He is also the founding President at Fuse Health Strategies, a patient-centered consulting firm focused on integration of behavioral health and primary care. Dr. Daviss is a clinical assistant professor at University of Maryland School of Medicine and recent past Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center.
Dr. Daviss has an extensive background in health care management, policy, and quality, in addition to subject matter expertise in psychiatry, psychopharmacology, clinical research, and medical informatics. He currently serves as Assembly Representative for the American Psychiatric Association, chair of the APA Committee on Mental Health Information Technology, on URAC’s Health Standards Committee, on the Maryland Health Care Commission’s Health Information Exchange Policy Board, and on CRISP’s Clinical Committee. He co-authored Shrink Rap: Three Psychiatrists Explain Their Work.
Mark E. Lutes, Member, Epstein Becker Green
Session moderator Mark Lutes, member, Epstein Becker Green and EBG Advisors, Inc., has practiced with the firm for 26 years and offers strategic counsel on health policy and reimbursement strategy. He routinely deploys multidisciplinary teams of attorneys, reimbursement specialists, engineers, and scientists to assess the reimbursement, FDA and other domestic and international regulatory approvals, fraud and abuse compliance, CMS and legislative landscapes and other issues impacting proposed client investments in health care companies.
