Montana Access to Pediatric Psychiatry Network
Grant Status: Completed
Training Category: Pediatric Mental Health Care Access Program (PMHCA)
Project Director(s):
Mackenzie Petersen, MPH-MSW
Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services
1400 East Broadway, Room A-116
Helena, MT 59601-2951
Phone: (406) 444-3617
Email: Mackenzie.Petersen@MT.GOV
Problem:
Montana faces a critical shortage of pediatric mental health professionals, leaving mental healthcare for children and adolescents to primary care providers who do not have training to provide these services.
Goals and Objectives:
Goal: To integrate behavioral health and pediatric primary care by developing and improving Montana's telehealth access program. Project Objectives: (A) Coordinate and connect psychiatric and mental health services across the state of Montana through a statewide provider network; (B) Enable primary care providers to conduct early identification, diagnosis, and treatment for children with behavioral health conditions; and (C) Increase the delivery of psychiatric and mental health services through telehealth care networks.
Methodology:
MAPP-Net will meet pediatric psychiatry needs in every county in Montana by connecting pediatric psychiatrists to primary care providers across the state to provide expert consultation services via a toll-free access line, increasing primary care providers' capacity to treat pediatric patients with mental illness through ongoing professional development delivered through Project ECHO, and supporting primary care providers in managing these patients through statewide grand round-style case discussions delivered through synchronous distance technology.
Coordination:
MAPP-Net will housed in the Family & Community Health Bureau with Montana's Title V MCH at the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) and delivered by Montana's largest provider of psychiatric care, Billings Clinic, a Magnet hospital with an extensive statewide network.
Evaluation:
The evaluation plan, which will be undertaken by the University of Montana Rural Institute, uses a combination of quantitative and qualitative measures and processes to document and guide development activities and monitor program implementation outputs and outcomes. Evaluation data will include existing data review, survey results, and program use summaries. We will use existing data gathering mechanisms and develop new ones, as needed, to accomplish our evaluation purposes. Results will be reviewed on a regular basis to guide the continuous improvement process.