Premera Blue Cross is investing $6.6 million in University of Washington scholarships to help address the state’s mental health workforce crisis.
Premera Blue Cross is investing $6.6 million in advanced nursing education through the University of Washington Psychiatry Scholarships. Beginning in 2023, the scholarship will accept up to four ARNP fellows each year. Training will focus on inpatient, outpatient, telemedicine consultations, and comprehensive mental health care for mental illness at both primary care clinics and the University of Washington Medical Center – Northwest.
The investment continues the organization’s initiative to address the nation’s growing mental health crisis. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness, one in five adults and one in six youths between the ages of 6 and 17 in Washington State experience a mental illness each year. However, more than half of adults and adolescents with mental health problems have not received treatment in the past year, largely due to a lack of trained clinicians.
In Washington State, 35 of 39 counties are designated by the federal government as mental health shortage areas, with limited access to clinical psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatric nurses, and family and family therapists. Almost half of the counties in the state, all in rural areas, do not have a single psychiatrist providing direct patient care.
“If we want to improve healthcare in the future, we need to invest in sustainable solutions now,” said Geoffrey Rowe, President and CEO of Premera Blue Cross. “The University of Washington is constantly looking for innovative ways to improve mental health.” workforce means the community will benefit for years to come.”
The training provided by this fellowship will enable Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners to develop their expertise and work as Consultant Psychiatrists in a collaborative care model. The collaborative care model developed at the Washington University School of Medicine aims to treat common and persistent mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety, integrate mental health services into primary care clinics, and provide regular psychiatric consultations for patients who are not improving as expected. A
“Our future fellows will transform access to effective mental health care in Washington State through collaboration, community support, and sustainable, evidence-based care for patients and their families,” said Dr. Anna Ratzliff, Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Washington School of Psychiatry. Medicine.
“This fellowship will prepare mental health practitioners to lead in challenging clinical settings, mentor other nurses and interprofessional mental health providers, and improve equal access to mental health care,” said Azita Emami, the center’s executive director. University of Washington School of Nursing.
These investments build on Premera and UW’s goals to improve the health of Washington State, including:
These investments are part of Premera’s strategy to improve access to health care in rural areas, with a particular focus on the recruitment and training of doctors, nurses and paramedics, clinical integration of behavioral health, programs to increase the capacity of mental health crisis centers in rural areas, and provision of rural areas. Will be provided a small grant for equipment.
Copyright 2022 University of Washington | Seattle | All rights reserved | Privacy & Terms
Post time: Jul-15-2023