Webinar: Unity Point Health: Expanding Access to Crisis Services via Telehealth & Embedded Behavioral Health Specialists in EDs

Hold on Tuesday, December 18, 2018
11:00-11:45 a.m. Eastern Time

Webinar Replay

Dennis Duke; President and Mary A. Petersen; COO – UnityPoint Health: Robert Young Center Quad Cities, IA & IL on Tuesday, December 18 at 11 pm ET presented a special 45-minute AHA members-only webinar presentation and discussion on expanding access to crisis behavioral health services.

As a comprehensive community mental health center, the Robert Young Center (RYC) is integrated within UnityPoint Health. This model provides bi-directional integration of primary and behavioral health care services as well as a crisis intervention system fully embedded within the emergency departments (EDs), leading to better clinical outcomes at less expense.

 In 2016 UnityPoint Health’s Robert Young Center for Community Mental Health developed, and managed crisis behavioral health services for the 300,000 residents of five counties in eastern Iowa. They established a 24-hour crisis line for the five-county region, as well as telehealth systems in EDs throughout the region.  The program also embedded behavioral health care coordinators in those EDs to ensure that those patients do make contact with the recommended services.

In the past three years following implementation, the rate of patients who had to be transferred out of the region decreased to 9.2% percent of all people admitted; 62% percent of clients were reconnected with community services, for an estimated cost savings of close to $21 million.  Moreover, the crisis re-presentations to emergency departments within 30 days was reduced to 13% overall.  

Webinar participants will learn

•        How to identify partners and implement components of the crisis system

•        What are the financial and quality outcomes

•        What challenges have been faced

•        What are the next steps to reduce the overall healthcare spend

The first 20 minutes of the webinar will focus on the core elements of their initiative needed to replicate similar solutions in your organization and the remaining time will be for questions and discussion.

To view replay, click here.   Please contact me at 312.422.3303 or rchickey@aha.org if you have any questions regarding the webinar. 

Rebecca B. Chickey, MPH,
AHA Director, Section for Psychiatric and Substance Abuse Services

Speaker Bios:
Mary A. Petersen, MSN, RN
Dennis Duke

Webinar Materials:
Presentation PowerPoint

Webinar Replay