Care Coordination: What is it? Who qualifies? [Infographic]

At Starting Point we know that spending time in high levels of care (like jail or prison, state mental health treatment facilities, crisis stabilization units, detox, and emergency rooms) has its own set of challenges. We also know that it is no walk in the park to transition from those institutions back into ‘normal life.’ If you or someone you know is going through this, then it may not be a shock to hear that finding the right mental health services, substance use services, medical providers, housing, transportation assistance, etc. is DIFFICULT.

Starting Point is here to help. In fact, we have a program called ‘Care Coordination’ that is specifically designed for this purpose. In this post, we will describe what Care Coordination is, who qualifies for Care Coordination, and the benefits and services Care Coordination provides. We will even provide an easy-to-follow infographic that describes the program. Make sure to download it and take it with you!

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What is Care Coordination?

Here at Starting Point, Care Coordination reduces the barriers of access to treatment for individuals referred to us from crisis units, hospitals, and emergency rooms. We link individuals to resources that advance their healing – mental health and substance use services, medication management, housing and transportation, etc. The program’s primary goal is to attain stability by promoting health and wellness.

“Care Coordination serves to assist individuals who are not yet effectively connected with the services and supports they need to transition successfully from higher levels of care to effective community-based care.”

FL, Office of substance abuse and mental health, and ute gazioch. care coordination framework 2016, Florida department of children and families, 1 Feb. 2016. https://www.myflfamilies.com/service-programs/samh/publications/docs/Care%20Coord%20Framework.pdf

The moral of the story is that Starting Point Behavioral Healthcare is here to help. Our Care Coordinators offer a single point of contact until the person served is adequately connected to care that meets their needs. Our goal is to educate and empower the person served.

Care Coordination provides:

• Connection to mental health treatment services (therapy, psychiatry, etc.)
• Connection to substance use treatment services (medication-assisted treatment, detox, etc.)
• Connection to mental health providers (primary care physicians, dental, etc.)
• Assistance exploring housing options
• Assistance finding local support groups
• Help applying for transportation assistance
• Support and guidance through the mental health and substance use recovery process

We also have a team of Peer Support Specialists (PSP) who have lived experience recovering from mental health and/or substance use disorders. They are trained and certified to support those currently struggling to recover. The PSP’s personal experience with these challenges provides a level of expertise and connection to the person served that professional training cannot replicate.

Who qualifies for Care Coordination?

An individual must be referred to Starting Point Behavioral Healthcare for Care Coordination services. Referrals come from:

• Outside providers like Baptist Health, MHRC, Wekiva Springs, Gateway, UF Health, or local justice systems

OR

• Starting Point staff (in order to qualify for an internal referral, the individual being referred must be presently engaged in services at Starting Point)

Care coordination connects the person served to mental health and substance use treatment facilities, medical providers, housing, vocational services, and much more.

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If you or someone you know may benefit from Care Coordination services at Starting Point Behavioral Healthcare, please ask your provider to make a referral. If you are not presently engaged in services anywhere, but believe you may benefit from Care Coordination, please call Starting Point’s main line (904-225-8280) and follow the prompts for new patient registration. We have many programs that may better suit your needs and will be happy to discuss your options.

If you are a referring agency or provider interested in partnership, please reach out to Starting Point’s Care Coordination lead, Tina Scannell at tscannell@spbh.org.