Managing chronic disease benefits individuals with serious mental illness, providers, government

LAS VEGAS — A chronic disease management program improved outcomes among individuals with serious mental illness and may have a broader impact across health care and government systems, according to data presented at the National Council for Behavioral Health annual conference.

“Austin Travis County Integral Care’s Chronic Disease Management program address the profound disparity in life expectancy for those with serious mental illness — the latest studies suggest these individuals tend to die 25 years sooner than the rest of the population,” Teresa Williams, MA, practice administrator for prevention services at Austin Travis County Integral Care, and colleagues wrote. “They are not dying from mental illness, they are dying from preventable and manageable chronic diseases.”

To mitigate disparities and help individuals with serious mental illness live healthier lives, researchers provided person-centered care and established a collaborative partnership and process led by patients themselves.

The Chronic Disease Management Program is a voluntary program designed to assist individuals with chronic diseases by increasing activity levels, quitting tobacco use and improving diet.

As a result of the program, researchers estimated a savings of $181,046 in psychiatric admission costs.

Further, among individuals with baseline readings outside the normal range, 58% exhibited a decrease in body fat percentage; 66% showed improvement in their weight; 60% showed improvement in overall cholesterol; 80% showed improvement in triglycerides and HDL levels; 75% showed improvement in LDL levels; and 63% showed improvement in carboxyhemoglobin levels.

Researchers have administered 13,404 tobacco use assessments among 10,299 individuals since September 2014.

Some challenges the program faces include data collection of medical services outside of the Austin Travis County Integral Care system and difficulty finding specialists credentialed in nutrition, exercise and mental health.

“It is the responsibility of all behavioral health providers to address the elevated rates of chronic disease in this vulnerable population. The health benefits are significant and it has also been shown that preventing and controlling chronic disease can save money for both governments and individuals,” the researchers concluded. – by Amanda Oldt

Reference:

Williams T and Wilson WT. Chronic disease management: an integrated care program. Presented at: The National Council for Behavioral Health Conference; March 7-9, 2016; Las Vegas.

Disclosure: Healio.com/Psychiatry was unable to confirm relevant financial disclosures at the time of publication.