ATSH:PC Site Visits 2019

Dates: July 17th and August 8th

Location: Boston, Massachusetts

Organization Description: In 2003, Boston Medical Center established the Massachusetts Model for Office Based Addiction Treatment (OBAT) Program to address key barriers in integrating buprenorphine treatment in office-based practices. Nationally recognized and nationally replicated, the BMC OBAT Program has been treating patients for over 16 years using a collaborative care model that relies on nurse care managers to ensure delivery of high quality addiction treatment while effectively and efficiently utilizing the time of providers waivered to prescribe buprenorphine. Visit their website: https://www.bmcobat.org/

MAT Services Description: Dubbed the “Massachusetts Model,” BMC’s OBAT Program now serves as a model of service delivery for facilitating access to life-saving treatment and improving treatment outcomes in patients with opioid use disorders. BMC’s OBAT Program, integrated into its primary care and specialty outpatient clinics, enables patients to receive care for substance use disorders similar to the way that other chronic medical conditions are managed. BMC’s OBAT Program in Primary Care currently serves over 800 patients at any given time and is the largest hospital based opioid treatment program in New England. The BMC OBAT model is effective at increasing access to evidence based treatment for addiction as well as improving the quality of care provided to patients with substance use disorders. Under BMC’s leadership the STATE OBAT Program treated over 16,000 patients for substance use disorders in 2017.

Dates: July 25th – July 26th (a 2-day site visit)

Location: Knoxville, Tennessee

Special Note About The Site Visit: This is a two day site visit that will include organizations from other states. The site visit will be about 50 people. During the two days, there will be an opportunity for ATSH attendees to meet separately with the Cherokee team to ask questions and have small discussions.

Organization Description: Cherokee Health Systems (CHS) is an innovator and nationally-recognized leader in integrated care, embedding behavioral health providers alongside primary care providers to provide the full range of patient care. In 2016, CHS took the next step in the evolution of the care model and embedded addiction medicine providers within the existing integrated care structure to offer comprehensive outpatient services, including medication and behavioral therapy, to patients suffering from the disease of addiction. Visit their website: www.cherokeehealth.com

MAT Services Description: The addiction medicine service (AMS) at CHS operates within the framework of the integrated model of care, providing substance use disorder care up to the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) Level 2.1 treatment placement, intensive outpatient (IOP) with medication management.

The clinic staff includes addiction medicine specialists, primary care providers (PCP), behavioral health consultants (BHC), registered nurses, community health coordinators (CHC), pharmacists, and certified peer recovery specialists (CPRS). The AMS provides behavioral therapy in group and individual encounters, management of acute and chronic medical conditions, psychiatric medication management, medication assisted treatment (MAT) for substance use disorders, CHC support for addressing social determinants of health, and referrals to specialist healthcare providers internal and external to the organization as clinically indicated.

Dates: August 13th and August 15th

Location: Woodland, CA & West Sacramento, CA

Organization Description: CommuniCare Health Centers (CCHC) is a private non-profit organization and a Federally Qualified Health Center located in Yolo County providing comprehensive primary medical and dental care, behavioral health services, substance use treatment, health education, and ancillary patient services through three main clinic sites located in Davis, West Sacramento and Woodland, an additional five satellite sites, and through outreach services in communities throughout Yolo County. CCHC was founded in 1972 and has continuously provided accessible, affordable comprehensive health care services including behavioral health and substance use disorder services. CommuniCare focuses on providing services to meet the needs of the population of culturally diverse, low income, uninsured and underinsured residents of Yolo County. Visit their website: https://www.communicarehc.org/

MAT Services Description: CCHC is the primary mental health and substance use provider for Juvenile-Justice involved Youth and CalWORKS and is the primary outpatient provider of Medication Assisted Treatment and Outpatient Drug Medi-Cal Services within Yolo County. CCHC offers Outpatient Substance Use Services, Intensive Outpatient Substance Use Services and Perinatal Intensive Substance Use Services, along with MAT services. Outpatient MAT is primarily delivered through a Nurse Care Manager Model. CCHC’s Behavioral Health Department currently has a staff of 87, including Professional and Non-professional staff who are licensed, registered, or certified. In 2018, CCHC served 1 out of 8 Yolo County residents, provided 134,326 visits to 27,038 unique individuals. 31% of total visit provided at CCHC were behavioral Health/Substance Use services.

Dates: July 25th, August 7th, and August 15th

Location: Concord, CA

MAT Services and Organization Description: Contra Costa Public Health Clinic Services, in collaboration with Behavioral Health and CCRMC divisions of CCHS, offers a Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) Program called “Choosing Change”. The program utilizes a harm reduction approach when working with their patients and uses buprenorphine/naloxone (Suboxone) as their primary treatment medication.

Visit their website: https://cchealth.org/

The program consists of Mental Health Clinical Specialists, Registered Nurses, Community Health Workers, and Providers (MDs and NPs) who lead the county in providing medication management with buprenorphine/naloxone in combination with recovery based support groups. Choosing Change brings patients suffering with Opiate Use Disorder together in a safe environment to address emotions, identify coping skills, and give patients a sense of empowerment and autonomy to build a strong foundation for recovery. During group visits, Choosing Change staff work as a multidisciplinary team to meet patients’ diverse needs. In addition to groups, patients may request one-on-one time with the Choosing Change provider, nurse, and/or mental health clinician.