Learning Collaborative

*DEADLINE EXTENDED! APPLY NOW BY:
JANUARY 19, 2021 AT 5:00PM (PST)

Application Overview

In partnership with the California Department of Health Care Services, the Center for Care Innovations (CCI) is launching Addiction Treatment Starts Here Learning Collaborative. Below you will find information about the program and application process. You can also download the Request for Applications.

Table of Contents
Background
Eligibility Requirements
Program Components
Participation Expectations
Timeline
What Makes a Strong Application?
Grant Funding
Informational Webinar
Contact Us
Apply Now!

Background

The Center for Care Innovations (CCI) is announcing the availability of funding as part of its Addiction Treatment Starts Here (ATSH) program. The Learning Collaborative will support up to 30 primary care health centers in California with starting new programs providing medications for addiction treatment (MAT).

Health centers accepted into the program will be eligible for up to $45,000 in funding. The 18-month learning collaborative will launch in March 2021 and conclude in August 2022. In addition to funding, the Learning Collaborative will offer learning sessions and webinars led by experts in the field, site visits to organizations with exemplar MAT programs, 1:1 coaching, and other technical assistance to support each organization in designing a program that meets the needs of its patients. The Learning Collaborative is funded through the State Opioid Response Grant as part of the MAT Expansion Project from the California Department of Health Care Services.

Program Components

The Learning Collaborative will offer grants, training, tools, technical expertise, and coaching to all participants.

Curriculum Topics

The curriculum has been designed by state and national experts and is based on lessons learned from CCI’s previous MAT collaboratives. Content will address clinical and operational issues associated with MAT, including:

  • Building a clinic culture around treating addiction as a chronic disease.
  • Establishing and scaling primary care MAT program models.
  • Patient identification and selection.
  • Buprenorphine, Naltrexone, and Naloxone 101, including medication starts, stabilization, and maintenance.
  • Assessing levels of care and building strong referrals pathways to specialty care when appropriate.
  • Strategies to address stigma and other attitudes and beliefs that impact the success of MAT programs.
  • Tools and approaches to address stimulant use disorder.
  • Managing patients with co-morbid chronic pain.
  • Harm reduction.
  • Trauma-informed care.
  • Managing co-occurring substance use disorders (SUD), such as alcohol, methamphetamine, cocaine, tobacco, and/or benzodiazepine use.
  • Building partnerships to promote collaboration across care transition points, such as with acute care hospitals with emergency departments, sobering centers, and behavioral health programs.
  • Creating linkages to community services and supports to address psychosocial risk factors.

Learning Collaborative Activities 

CCI designed a mix of program activities that have proven effective in enabling teams to expand access to MAT. Program activities include:

  • 3 Learning Sessions: A mix of virtual and in-person learning sessions to share and learn from peers and experts.*
  • Topical Webinars: Expert- and peer-led sharing on topics such as MAT models, contingency management, MAT for youth, etc.
  • Site Visits: Option to learn from sites with mature MAT programs. Site visits are likely to include virtual and in-person options.
  • Motivational Interviewing training.
  • 1:1 coaching to support your team.
  • Online community to share resources and communicate.
  • Grants of $45,000 to help offset the costs of participating in program activities, regularly submitting data, and developing a MAT program.

*Note: Most previous Addiction Treatment Starts Here participants expressed deep appreciation for the value of in-person activities. However, due to challenges associated with COVID-19, in-person activities are limited and are scheduled later in the project. If in-person meetings and travel become safer, CCI may seek to adapt the above events to include more in-person work.

Timeline

The ATSH Learning Collaborative runs from March 2021 to August 2022. Key dates include:

Request for Applications Released November 30, 2020
Informational Webinar December 9, 2020, (10 – 11am PT)
Application Deadline January 19, 2021, (5 pm PT)
Cohort Announced March 1, 2021
Program Start & Kick-Off Webinar March 17, 2021, (12 – 1:30 pm PT)
Learning Session 1: Two-Part Virtual Session June 15 & June 22, 2021
Learning Session 2: Two-Part Virtual Session November 10 & November 17, 2021
Learning Session 3: Two-Day In-Person Session June 20 – June 21, 2022
Program End August 30, 2022

Grant Funding

Grants of $45,000 will be awarded to each accepted clinic site to help offset the costs of participating in in-person events and developing and/or expanding an MAT program.

Grant Installment Details

Installments are typically released to participants within two months of deliverable due dates.

  1. $10,000 for meeting Deliverable No. 1:  Participation by your team, including a senior leader, in the March 17, 2021 kick-off webinar and submission of baseline data on the measure set and the capability assessment (both due April 30, 2021).
  2. $10,000 for meeting Deliverable No. 2: Submitting two quarters of data, developing an aim statement, and participating in Learning Session 1.
  3. $15,000 for meeting Deliverable No. 3: Submitting one quarter of data, the midpoint capability assessment, a progress report, and participating in Learning Session 2.
  4. $10,000 for meeting Deliverable No. 4: Submitting two quarters of data, the final capability assessment, a final progress report, and attending Learning Session 3.

Eligibility Requirements

The goal of the Learning Collaborative is to create new access points for MAT in California’s health care safety net. Organizations in California that provide comprehensive primary care services to underserved populations are eligible to apply. Organizations must be non-profit and tax-exempt under 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Service Code or a governmental, tribal, or public entity. This includes:

  • Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) and FQHC look-alikes.
  • Community clinics, rural health clinics, and free clinics.
  • Ambulatory care clinics owned and operated by public hospitals.
  • Indian Health Service clinics.

Applicants should be “new” to MAT. We define this as (1) having fewer than five patients regularly receiving buprenorphine or naltrexone for OUD and (2) lacking formalized policies and procedures for the provision of MAT. A program can qualify as “new” even if another site or location within the organization provides MAT. New service lines located within clinics that already have an active MAT program (e.g., launch of a mobile clinic) will be assessed on a case-by-case basis.

CCI will accept applications from multiple clinic sites within the same organization, as long as each site is “new” to MAT. Up to three clinic sites per organization can apply. Project team members may overlap, but each site must define the team responsible for its MAT program and must submit a separate application that clearly defines site-specific goals. Each site selected will be eligible for a grant of up to $45,000.

Organizations interested in integrating MAT into non-primary care based services are not eligible for this program. If you have questions about whether you qualify, please email Briana Harris-Mills, senior program coordinator, at [email protected].

Participation Expectations

Based on CCI’s previous MAT collaboratives, we identified factors that contribute to an organization’s success in implementing MAT programs. We designed participation requirements with this in mind.

By applying to join the Learning Collaborative, applicants agree they will:

1. Develop a Core MAT Team.

In general, we recommend teams of 4-6 people. We recognize that some roles overlap (e.g., your x-waivered prescriber may also be your clinical champion) so you may list the same person for more than one role. You will list your core team members in the application. Teams should include the following roles:

    • Program Lead: Responsible for day-to-day activities of the program and serves as the point person for communications with CCI.
    • X-Waivered Clinician: Prescriber with DATA 2000 X-waiver providing services at your site.
    • Clinical Champion: A clinical leader, such as a Behavioral Health Director, Medical Director or Chief Medical Officer.
    • Front Line Staff: At least one front line support staff involved in MAT.  Examples of front line staff include nurses, SUD counselors, care coordinators/navigators, medical assistants, social workers, etc.
    • Data Lead: A point person for submitting quarterly data on the measure set.

Other roles you should consider for your core team include:

    • Senior Leaders: Chief Executive Officer, executive director, or chief operating officer.
    • Behavioral Health Staff: Drug and alcohol counselors, licensed clinical social workers, etc.

2. Actively Participate in the Following Events and Activities.

    • Learning Sessions: Participation by at least three core team members in all three learning sessions. Given COVID-19 challenges, we expect the first two learning sessions will be virtual and the final learning session will be in-person.
    • Measurement:
      • Capability Assessment: Evaluate your current state, using a tool that assesses capabilities important to MAT. This will be completed three times (baseline, midpoint, endpoint).
      • Measure Set: Submit data on a quarterly basis on the program measure set.
      • Data Lead: Assign a data lead who will take responsibility for submitting numerator and denominator information on the measures.
    • Establish MAT Program Goals: Submit an aim statement, driver diagram, and work plan for your MAT program. Templates will be provided along with guidance and support.
    • Progress Reports: Update CCI on your progress via three progress reports. CCI will prepare a template for you to use.
    • Senior Leader Participation: A senior leader should join the March 17, 2021 kick-off webinar and a webinar at the end of the project sharing MAT program results and sustainability goals.

We also ask that your team actively shares challenges, opportunities, bright spots, and questions with your fellow program participants. This sharing can be done via participation in learning events, using the online community, and conducting regular calls with your coach.

3. Work with Your ATSH Learning Collaborative Coach

Each Learning Collaborative team will be assigned a coach with expertise in designing MAT programs. In our experience, teams that make the most progress set aside dedicated time for multiple team members to meet regularly with their coach. We strongly encourage each team to establish a regularly scheduled and protected time to meet with their coach on a monthly basis.

What Makes A Strong Application?

CCI is looking for applicants with the following characteristics:

  • Commitment to build a MAT program within primary care at your clinic site. This commitment is demonstrated by having:
    • A clinician champion who advocates for and provides clinical support to the MAT team.
    • A commitment to protect the time of core team members needed for their participation in Addiction Treatment Starts Here activities.
    • An administrative champion who supports your team, including enabling protected time to participate in Addiction Treatment Starts Here activities and improvement work at your site.
    • A core team that actively participates in Addiction Treatment Starts Here activities and in work to design and implement a MAT program.
  • Readiness to actively and openly share approaches and lessons learned with other teams.
  • Ability to submit quarterly data on the program measure set and to submit a baseline, midpoint, and endpoint capability assessment.

Informational Webinar

Watch the Informational Webinar to hear a detailed description of the program. The slides from the webinar are available here.

Apply Now!

Your application must be submitted online by Tuesday, January 19, 2021, at 5 pm PST. If multiple clinic sites from one organization are applying, each site must complete a separate application. The program cohort will be announced by Monday, March 1, 2021.

Upon reviewing applications, CCI may request follow-up information or schedule a phone call with your team. We intend to select 30 teams for the program. CCI will contact you by March 1, 2021 to let you know whether you have been accepted into the program. In the meantime, please hold March 17, 2021 (12 pm – 1:30 pm) for the ATSH Learning Collaborative kick-off webinar. You should invite your MAT core team and a senior leader from your organization. Once you have been accepted into the program, we will send webinar registration information, along with the URL to join the meeting.

Apply

Contact Us

If you have any questions regarding the Addiction Treatment Starts Here Learning Collaborative program and application process, contact Briana Harris-Mills.