Solutions CCRC Launches a Telemedicine Program to Connect SPMI Consumers with a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner
Cinncinatti, OH (PRWEB) July 29, 2013 -- Technology has changed the way people connect with one another. At Solutions CCRC outpatient clinic in Wilmington, OH, technology is being used to connect consumers and onsite staff with a remote team member, Patti Rodgers, a psychiatric nurse practitioner.
Through a televideo connection and remote access to Solutions CCRC’s health records, Rodgers sees behavioral health consumers two days a week from her home office in Youngstown, OH. By collaborating with the onsite care team, Rodgers is able to conduct psychiatric assessments and manage and prescribe client medication. Consumers and case managers meet with Rodgers together using the televideo equipment.
“I count on the case managers to be my ‘hands-on’ representative during sessions,” explains Rodgers. “They share pertinent information with me and make sure the client can hear and see me without any difficulty.”
Effective behavioral health requires collaboration and communication among multiple parties; consumers, providers, caregivers, and loved ones must all work together to achieve optimum results.
While collaboration between remote and onsite providers requires a different way of connecting, the team approach to mental health care is nothing new. The staff at Solutions CCRC oriented Rodgers to the organization, the community, and the unique concerns of Solutions clientele, just as they would for new in-person providers.
“The staff at Solutions is great to work with-- they are very helpful, knowledgeable, and they know our clients well,” explains Rodgers. “They are my eyes and ears in our sessions.”
The telemedicine program that connects Solutions CCRC to Rodgers launched July 1. In this early stage of the program all members of the team are working to build a strong relationship.
“Patti is building great rapport with the consumers and the onsite case managers; her professionalism is helping everyone to acclimate to the new medium of care,” said Christina Rivers, the team supervisor at Solutions CCRC Wilmington.
“Some people are reluctant to accept the idea of telemedicine, but once clients and staff have tried it and spoken with Patti, they have all had positive things to say about the experience,” Rivers explains.
Like other behavioral health facilities throughout the nation, Solutions CCRC has had a challenging time recruiting and retaining psychiatric providers and prescribers.
“Clinton County competes with urban areas like Cincinnati and Dayton when recruiting providers,” explains Jennifer Cline, the Service Director at Solutions CCRC.
Because of a national shortage of behavioral health providers and specialists, prescribers are in high demand. Telemedicine facilitates access to providers who don’t have to be local. With telemedicine, organizations can work with providers who are the best fit for the organization’s needs regardless of where that provider is physically located.
The leadership at Solutions CCRC is excited about telemedicine’s ability to connect them with a sustainable and consistent provider.
“We are able to enhance the work of our in-person staff with easy access to a reliable prescriber via telemedicine. We are looking forward to a long-term collaborative relationship with Patti,” explains Cline.
Solutions CCRC provides a broad array of mental health services and alcohol/drug outpatient services in the Cincinnati area. The Solutions CCRC facility in Wilmington focuses on outpatient services for adults dealing with severe and persistent mental illness.
Patti Rodgers works for InSight Telepsychiatry, a national telepsychiatry provider company that serves Ohio with routine and crisis telepsychiatry programs. InSight employs psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners of all specialties and interests.
“I have always enjoyed working with clients with severe and persistent mental illness more than any other population,” explains Rodgers. “Watching the clients at Solutions CCRC make improvements, no matter how small, is very rewarding to me. My patients are quite motivated and inspirational!”
Daniayla Stein, InSight Telepsychiatry, http://www.in-sight.net, 770.713.4161, [email protected]
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