Coordination of Care with Primary Care Physicians
(PCPs)
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Published: October, 2001
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PacifiCare Behavioral Health is committed to ensuring that
behavioral health care and primary care services are well
coordinated. Behavioral disorders can have a medical basis
or implications for the member's physical health. Medical/surgical
problems, or their management, may have implications for the
member's behavioral health. Appropriate, confidential, and
timely information sharing and careful medication monitoring
is especially important when the member is receiving psychotropic
medications and/or has a new or continuing medical problem.
Coordinating behavioral health and medical care is most effective
when a partnership is formed among the Primary Care Physician,
the member, and the behavioral health care specialist. This
allows for an exchange of information about medical conditions
and medications that can influence behavioral health and medical
care treatment strategies.
It is the provider's responsibility to help the member understand
the importance of coordinating care among appropriate health
care providers. Although in rare instances a particular patient
may decline to give consent, it is PBH's expectation that
the majority of patients, with the encouragement of the provider,
will agree to allow coordination of care.
For these reasons, PBH mails a Health Care Coordination Form
to every office-based practitioner to whom PBH makes a referral.
The form provides the Primary Care Physician with brief but
essential information about the patient's diagnosis and treatment
plan. The form doubles as a signed release for the exchange
of information between the behavioral health care provider
and the PCP. The one-page form can be easily included in the
patient's medical records (and can only be shared with you
given the permission of the patient). In addition, PBH mails
a coordination of care reminder letter with all authorizations
following the initial referral. Please see the Index
of Forms for a copy of the Health Care Coordination Form.
This form must be completed for all patients seen.
All PBH network providers, including psychiatrists, psychologists,
social workers, marriage and family counselors, and psychiatric
nurses, are responsible for actively coordinating the behavioral
health care they deliver with primary care.
Physician Consultation Service
PCPs can call PBH for clinical consultation during business
hours (Monday through Friday, 9:00AM to 5:00PM, Pacific Time)
by calling (800) 292-2922. This is a dedicated service that
is staffed by skilled behavioral health specialists at our
clinical offices.
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