This National Council report examines the role of behavioral health in the healthcare home, and recommends addressing the integration of primary care services in behavioral health settings as well as behavioral health services in primary care settings.  

From the report:

The medical home’s emphasis on self-care resonates with the behavioral health system’s movement towards a Recovery and Resilience orientation. However, there has not been a clear articulation in the medical home model of the role of behavioral health. This is despite close alignment between the features of the medical home and the core components of research-based approaches to treating depression in primary care settings, for example the IMPACT model.

The core feature of the IMPACT model is collaborative care in which the individual’s primary care physician works with a care manager/ behavioral health consultant to develop and implement a treatment plan and the care manager/behavioral health consultant and primary care provider consult with a psychiatrist to change the treatment plan if the individual does not improve. The IMPACT model has been found to double the effectiveness of care for depression, improve physical functioning and pain status for participants and lower long term healthcare costs.

Full Report: Behavioral Health / Primary Care Integration and the Person-Centered Healthcare Home

National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare. (2009). Behavioral health / primary care integration and the person-centered healthcare home. Mauer,Barbara J.