Tatiana Sarkhosh, MPH
Program Manager, WCAAP
Behavioral Health Integration Networking and Collaboration Group
Thanks to the support from Amerigroup Washington, the Behavioral Health Integration (BHI) Networking and Collaboration Group was able to meet monthly in 2020 to discuss different topics related to establishing, managing, and refining BHI programs in pediatric primary care settings. Monthly topics included:
- Sample workflows: from scheduling to follow up
- Using Collaborative Care billing codes
- Primary Care Behavioral Health model
- The finances of getting started
- Partnering with an outside behavioral health agency
- BHI program measurement
- Hope Sparks and Pediatrics Northwest partnership
We look forward to resuming the monthly meetings in 2021. The 2021 meetings will expand beyond our group and invite national and expert speakers to present on a variety of behavioral health integration topics. Please reach out to Tatiana Sarkhosh at tsarkhosh@wcaap.org if you are interested in signing up for these meetings.
Second Rapid Behavioral Health Education Series
Thanks to the support from Community Health Plan of Washington and Amerigroup Washington, the Washington Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics was able to host a second rapid behavioral health education series this fall to educate pediatric primary care providers. The four-week series was hosted by Dr. Bob Hilt and Dr. Rupin Thakkar and was limited to a small group of participants to increase the ability for case-based learning and peer interaction. In addition to a 30-minute lecture from Dr. Hilt, participants pre-submitted case studies to comprise the discussion portion for the week’s topic. All session recordings, content training videos, corresponding outlines, and PowerPoints from both the spring and fall series are saved to the WCAAP Behavioral Health Education page. The four session topics include (1) Anxiety Disorders and “Exposure”, (2) ADHD and Non-medication “Accommodations”, (3) Disruptive Behavior and Behavior Management, and (4) Depression and Behavioral Activation. WCAAP is working to develop additional education and training opportunities in 2021.