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Published
2018-11-30
Issue
Section
Analytical Essays
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Cost-effectiveness of telemedicine-based integrated care for treating mental illness in rural FQHCs
Amelia Harju
University of Minnesota School of Public Health
Abstract
Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) are nonprofit facilities that receive federal funding to provide primary and preventative care to a large proportion of low income patients, relative to populations served by other medical centers. Rural FQHC patients often have complex medical needs and are burdened with excessively high medical expenses, due in part to lack of access to adequate primary care, preventative care, and chronic disease management services. Mental health services are a particular concern for rural FQHC patients, because there is a severe shortage of rural mental health providers throughout the United States. Current best practice for highquality delivery of mental health services is through the use of integrated care treatment models. These models merge typical health care services with mental health services and strive to promote communication and collaboration between all providers that are responsible for patients’ physical and mental health. However, integrated care can be expensive to implement and is not always possible in rural settings due to health care provider shortages. To overcome these barriers, integrated care models could be implemented with telemedicine, which utilizes information technology (e.g., video conferences) to provide health care services to patients from a distance.
