Evaluation of the PACE/PACENET BHL Clinical Program

The SUpporting Seniors Receiving Treatment And INtervention (SUSTAIN) program is an evidence-based clinical service administered via telephone and designed to help identify and manage behavioral health issues among enrollees of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Aging's Pharmaceutical Assistance Contract for the Elderly (PACE) and the PACE Needs Enhancement Tier (PACENET) Program who have been newly prescribed psychotropic medications. The SUSTAIN program has adapted the existing software and staffing model from Penn's Behavioral Health Laboratory (BHL), which has been used to integrate Mental Health (MH) care within primary care in other health systems, including the VA where it was originally developed. The SUSTAIN program is a novel and flexible clinical service that addresses some of the barriers that hinder treatment outcomes for MH problems. Given the fact that the SUSTAIN program provides assessment, monitoring, early intervention, disease management, and referral management over the telephone, the program can be tailored to each individual's specific needs. The SUSTAIN program also overcomes logistical barriers such as the necessity of frequent face-to-face contact in specialty programs, and thus can enhance existing specialty care programs by reducing wait times and "no-show" rates. As a result, the SUSTAIN program has the potential to result in higher patient satisfaction, improved health, and, accordingly, greater independent functioning.

The SUSTAIN program assesses individuals with behavioral health issues and offers a subset of these individuals ongoing follow-up services based on clinical need and symptom severity. Follow-up service options include Monitoring and Care Management. Monitoring consists of up to 4 brief (5-10 minutes), structured assessments following the baseline assessment. These follow-up contacts are conducted over the telephone by the Heath Technician (HT) or Behavioral Health Provider (BHP) and take place during the initial 12 weeks of pharmaceutical treatment. These brief interviews monitor symptoms, adherence, side effects, and response to treatment. Care Management is algorithm-driven care for conditions such as depression, panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and chronic pain, and is delivered by a BHP as an adjunct to primary care. The BHP monitors and encourages patient acceptance and adherence to treatment recommendations through support, education, and motivational engagement.

The investigators will evaluate the extent to which SUSTAIN is related to program participants' outcomes. The evaluation of the program relies on 2 sources of data: 1) a retrospective chart review of data collected as part of the clinical program, which includes data from the baseline and follow-up clinical interviews, and 2) data collected during a one-time 6 Month Outcome Research Evaluation interview completed with SUSTAIN program participants who provide verbal consent. The retrospective chart review will evaluate the clinical data from 5500 PACE/PACENET enrollees who participate in the PACE/PACENET SUSTAIN Clinical Program (which includes both Monitoring and Care Management). The 6 Month Outcome Research Evaluation will evaluate long term outcomes among a subset of participants.

Clinical Program Procedures:

Referred PACE/PACENET enrollees are contacted to complete an initial baseline clinical interview. Following the baseline interview, enrollees are offered several different services, depending on clinical need: Referral Management, Care Management, or Monitoring. Enrollee participation in the program occurs over the span of up to six months, with the number of calls based upon the follow-up service.