Outcomes of a health informatics technology-supported behavioral activation training for care managers in a collaborative care program.

Bauer AM, Jakupcak M, Hawrilenko M, Bechtel J, Arao R, Fortney JC. Outcomes of a health informatics technology-supported behavioral activation training for care managers in a collaborative care program. Families, systems & health : the journal of collaborative family healthcare. 2021 Mar 1; 39(1):89-100.

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Abstract:

INTRODUCTION: Health informatics-supported strategies for training and ongoing support may aid the delivery of evidence-based psychotherapies. The objective of this study was to describe the development, implementation, and practice outcomes of a scalable health informatics-supported training program for behavioral activation for patients who screened positive for posttraumatic stress disorder and/or bipolar disorder. METHOD: We trained 34 care managers in 12 rural health centers. They used a registry checklist to document the delivery of 10 behavioral activation skills for 4,632 sessions with 455 patients. Care managers received performance feedback based on registry data. Using encounter-level data reported by care managers, we described the implementation outcomes of patient reach and care manager skill adoption. We used cross-classified multilevel modeling to explore variation in skill delivery accounting for patient characteristics, provider characteristics, and change over time. RESULTS: Care managers engaged 88% of patients in behavioral activation and completed a minimum course for 57%. The average patient received 5.9 skills during treatment, with substantial variation driven more by providers (63%) than patients (29%). Care managers significantly increased the range of skills offered to patients over time. DISCUSSION: The registry-based checklist was a feasible training and support tool for community-based providers to deliver behavioral activation. Providers received data-driven performance feedback and demonstrated skill improvement over time, promoting sustainment. Future research will examine patient-level outcomes. Results underscore the potential public health impact of a simple registry-based skills checklist coupled with a scalable remote training program for evidence-based psychotherapy. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).