Integrated health will be an essential component for maintaining optimal health and wellness in the coming years.

An individual’s physical and mental health affects each other, either positively or negatively. For example, severe stress can lead to insomnia, which can cause fatigue and other health issues.

Unfortunately, physicians that practice in either the physical or mental health fields typically offer little to no service for ailments that are outside of their realm of expertise, resulting in patient conditions that reemerge cyclically.

However, patients who’ve received treatment for behavioral health issues find that physical symptoms reappear less frequently. As an example, one study found that arthritis patients who physicians treated for depression experienced less pain and improved general health.

Integrative medicine, a treatment methodology that encompasses the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of patients is a solution for this problem. Integrative care helps patients learn to develop healthy daily habits and skills. When using the method, care providers ask questions frequently in a search for solutions beyond invasive procedures.

Physicians who practice integrative medicine may recommend treatments that involve lifestyle changes and coaching to help patients adopt and maintain healthy habits. The treatments may include non-traditional practices, such as acupuncture, mind-body therapy and meditation, as well as more known solutions, such as nutritional recommendations or massage therapy.

Integrated Health Produces Positive Outcomes

Care providers who participate in integrative care continually evaluate and research the latest developments in the healthcare and medical fields. Integrative care models improve the ability of physicians and practitioners to identify patients who may experience substance abuse issues while they’re receiving treatment for physical ailments.

The methodology also streamlines the care process with comprehensive mental and behavioral health monitoring and improved treatment efficiency. Integrative care also increases rapport between patients and physicians, leading to improved trust and treatment compliance as well as reduced costs.

Integrative care consists of three primary models: the Screening Brief Intervention and Referral to Treatment Model (SBIRT), the primary care behavioral health model and the TEAMcare and collaborative care model. Using the SBIRT model, care providers evaluate patients and refer individuals with complex dependencies to specialty treatment.

With the primary care behavioral health model, physicians and mental health specialists work collaboratively to deliver immediate treatment for both physical and mental health conditions. The TEAMcare and collaborative care model involves treatment delivered by a physician, a care manager and a consulting psychiatrist and encompasses standardized screening protocols along with occasional behavioral health services.

There’s Hope on the Horizon

Behavioral health conditions change the way that patients think, feel and react, and they are a growing threat to the population. In the United States, for instance, physicians diagnose over 26-percent of the population with depression. Health care analysts forecast that the condition will serve as the second leading cause of disability in the nation by the year 2020.

A special kind of nurse, the psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP), cares for patients who are diagnosed with or suffering from behavioral health problems. The advanced nurse practitioners deliver care for patients who span the age continuum by providing treatments such as drug and cognitive behavioral therapies.

United States health care facilities offer nearly 60-percent of PMHNPs employment upon graduation, compared to 30-percent of all other kinds of graduates. The average annual salary for psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners is $96,460, and analysts forecast 31-percent job growth for the specialty.

PMHNPs may find work in varying settings, such as hospitals, home health care agencies and penal systems or in partnership with physicians. Within the discipline, practitioners may focus on specialties, such as addiction, forensics and marital or family therapy. Psychiatric mental health nurse practitioners may also provide indirect services as patient advocates or consultants.

Why Integrated Health Is Vital for Patients

Integrative care gives patients the ability and support needed to adopt positive lifestyle habits. The primary benefit of the practice derives from the collaboration between providers who practice physical and mental health. In this way, the methodology reduces medical errors and facilitates continuous care.

Integrative care is a relatively new healthcare methodology that emerged in the 1970’s, according to clinical psychologist Dr. Alexander Blount. The field is relatively young and still maturing. Because of this, integrative care practitioners are dedicated to developing and discovering new advancements in the methodology so that patients can enjoy positive health outcomes.

Many patients in the United States succumb to a combination of behavioral and physical health ailments that occur simultaneously. Research has shown that physicians delivery improved outcomes by treating both physical and behavioral conditions in unison. As a result, the nation’s health care system is experiencing a renaissance, where the treatment that physicians provide is just as important as the age-old practice of delivering service with the right bedside manner.

References:

American Psychological Association – Why Integrated Care is Essential for Health

Duquesne University – Important Trends in Healthcare

Maryville University – What is Healthcare Management & How Can Technology Improve it?

Regis College – Healthcare’s Unsung Heroes: The Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse