Future of Health Care 2020

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THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE // BEHAVIORAL HEALTH DIAGNOSIS: MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES Covid-19 concerns just added to an Marie Story, corporate wellbeing consultant at Walsh Duffield Cos. Inc., says the stigma of mental illlness gets in the way of people receiving help. JOED VIERA BY ANNEMARIE FRANCZYK Contributing writer For employers reluctant to recognize the impact of depression, anxiety and stress among their workers, the Covid-19 pandemic might push them into full mental-health programming when the economy reopens. Companies must first embrace that mental health is affecting operations, and the increasing trends of opioid addiction and suicide might force the issue. Some have seen rising use of their employee-assistance programs and employee claims data around mental-illness diagnoses and treatment. “They are being treated, and that’s a good thing,” said Marie Story, corporate wellbeing consultant at Walsh Duffield Cos. Inc. “There needs to be an extra step to create a culture, to make sure that the employers are supporting them.” But many employers are not doing so, Story said. For many, the stigma and the shame that come along with mental illness may be getting in the way. Ignoring problems only makes things worse. “Something that could be addressed simply and inexpensively festers and gets more difficult and expensive to treat,” said Kenneth Houseknecht, executive director of Mental Health Advocates of Western New York. The value of an investment in mental health could be a motivation. For every dollar put into scaled-up treatment for common mental disorders, there is a return of four dollars in improved health and productivity, according to a May 2019 report by the World Health Organization. Recent statistics around that point to a severe level of workplace mental illness, pre-Covid-19. RRThree-quarters of workers reported suffering from work-related stress. RRA quarter of all workers indicated they are depressed. RRMore than half say anxiety and stress affect their work performance. It should not be a surprise that workforce surveys had indicated that most employees were interested in policies and procedures regarding mental health, Houseknecht said. “It’s been on everyone’s radar well before coronavirus,” Houseknecht said. “If we had a workforce already dealing with anxiety, depression and stress, this is just going to accelerate and exacerbate it. There will be even greater urgency and immediacy to address the mental illness in the workplace. “Employers: Will you be anticipatory and take a positive approach and take a productive approach and create a mental-health culture, or will you just deal with issues as they come up?” Lindsay Herndon, BryLin Behavioral Health System’s director of outpatient services, said an organization’s leadership should be intent on becoming aware of how employees are functioning in the workplace. “The way you treat your staff, the more willing they will be to take on extra duties,” she said. “If they’re there just there to get a paycheck, they’re not going to be productive.” Communication can stem the problems that can lead to mental distress, Herndon said. “In the workplace, you get rumors that fly around, like ‘Oh my god, are they talking about me? Is my paycheck safe?’ That’s when mental-health problems break in,” Herndon said. To jump ahead of potential problems, BryLin engaged in two communication-focused initiatives to help administrators open the lines with staff. One was a survey that asked employees to rate workplace environ- 24 THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE BUFFALO BUSINESS FIRST
THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE // BEHAVIORAL HEALTH already stressed workforce ment, leadership support, organizational goals and the like. The second was trauma-informed care training for supervisors offered through the University at Buffalo. Herndon credits the improved communication and transparency that resulted with ultimately facilitating BryLin’s outpatient services shift to online when Covid-19 changes were instituted. “We went into telehealth within a week,” Herndon said. “We said, ‘This is how we are going to do it and how we’re going to support you.’” Such a positive approach, replacing a punitive tone, is an important element in trauma-informed care, said Susan Green, cofounder of UB’s Institute on Trauma and Trauma-Informed Care. For example, the workplace tone changes when assertive messages such as “All staff should be working remotely at this time and cannot come to the office without permission from their manager” are replaced with “We expect that all staff are working remotely at this time. As a reminder, staff can only come into the office with prior permission from their manager.” “The trauma-informed approach has employers, while moving through all the changes, very interested about how they are messaging and paying attention to the mental wellness of their workforce,” Green said. Prompted by requests from its employer groups, Independent Health developed a mental health “tool kit” that was introduced to its own staff of 1,500 in January. The health plan expects to offer it to large employer groups and then small groups by yearend. Put together with Horizon Health Services, the program offers a straightforward plan of action: Train the leadership on signs and symptoms of mental illness; add a focus on depression, anxiety, suicide prevention and substance abuse; and give workers information and resources to recognize mental illness and incentives to follow through. “Mental health should be treated just like diabetes and high cholesterol,” said Jennifer Picone, corporate wellness manager at Independent Health. “Our ultimate goal is to give people a little bit of knowledge and information in order to take that first step and not be afraid.” Feedback has been encouraging. The program has lifted whatever barriers there were to talk about mental health in the workplace, Picone said. Staff now knows how prevalent problems are, how to recognize mental illness in others and themselves and how to handle situations as they arise. The situation is similar at Walsh Duffield Cos. Inc., where internal mental-health programming for the insurance agency’s 100 workers has been extended to its employer groups. It has risen in importance with physical activity as a contributor to overall workplace wellness, Story said. “Physical activity programs aren’t enough. Employers, if an employee is struggling with something, all the walking in the world won’t work,” Story said. “The more we talk about it, the more we put it on par with physical health, the more it becomes accepted in the workplace.” “Mental health should be treated just like diabetes and high cholesterol. Our ultimate goal is to give people a little bit of knowledge and information in order to take that first step and not be afraid.” JENNIFER PICONE, corporate wellness manager at Independent Health Adapting Care to Meet the Needs of Our Patients and their Families • • • • • For a Confidential Phone Assessment CALL TODAY (716) 866-8200 Or Visit www.brylin.com For More Information BryLin Hospital Keeping Patients Connected with Loved Ones Through “Virtual Visits” BryLin Behavioral Health Center Telehealth Services Available for Outpatient Mental Health Care & Outpatient Substance Use Disorder Care With HELP, There’s HOPE We offer Behavioral Health Services for adults and children who are eligible for Office of Mental Health (OMH) services and Health and Recovery Plans (HARP). We provide a variety of services and offer help with eligibility. We are able to do intakes within 48 hours. For more information or to make a referral, please email bhealth@csevery1.com. MAY 15, 2020 THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE 25
Page 1 and 2: BUSINESS FIRST SUPPLEMENT THE FUTUR
Page 3 and 4: Contents JOED VIERA The Covid-19 pa
Page 5 and 6: ECMC’s Virtual Care EXTENDING HEA
Page 7 and 8: Patient Care Sponsored by BEYOND TH
Page 9 and 10: For a complicated time, the simples
Page 11 and 12: Collaboration, compassion and excep
Page 13 and 14: THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE // PATIEN
Page 15 and 16: Technology PAID ADVERTISEMENT Spons
Page 17 and 18: ROSWELL PARK COMPREHENSIVE CANCER C
Page 19 and 20: Thank You to all Healthcare Profess
Page 21 and 22: Visit shswny.org for more info As o
Page 24 and 25: THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE // BEHAVI
Page 28 and 29: Health Education Sponsored by NEXT-
Page 30 and 31: THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE // HEALTH
Page 32 and 33: To the nurses, physicians and all t
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Page 36 and 37: THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE // HEALTH
Page 38 and 39: Payments and Reimbursements THE FUT
Page 40 and 41: THE FUTURE OF HEALTH CARE // PAYMEN
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Page 44: Strokes require fast action. Don’

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