Government agencies, purchasers, health plans, and accrediting groups also should create incentives and policies to increase collaboration among all health care providers, the report says. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services should lead these efforts by establishing a permanent, high-level mechanism to foster greater coordination across the department's mental, substance-use, and general health care agencies.
A broad range of providers is licensed to diagnose and treat mental health and substance-use illnesses. Consequently, their training levels and therapeutic approaches often differ, leaving the overall work force with an uneven distribution of the knowledge and skills necessary to provide consistent, high-quality services. Congress should authorize and fund a Council on the Mental and Substance-Use Health Care Work Force to develop and implement plans to help professionals improve the quality of their care, the report says. Licensing boards, accrediting organizations, and purchasers should adopt any national standards identified by the council, which would operate as a partnership between the public and private sectors.
Likewise, government programs, employers, and purchasers should allocate funds in ways that better support the delivery of high-quality care, the committee said. For example, states should revamp how they purchase health care services, giving more weight to the quality of care that vendors would provide.
Health professionals' ability to quickly obtain and share information on a patient's health and potential treatments is essential to effective care, the report says. Federal and state governments should revise laws, regulati
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Contact: Vanee Vines
news@nas.edu
202-334-2138
The National Academies
1-Nov-2005