Author name: snwpadmin

BY JENNIFER CORREA-ELKINS, LCSW-C The COVID-19 pandemic required technological modernization that changed the direction of mental healthcare. In a whirlwind of fear of the unknown about the transmission of this illness, physical distancing measures were swiftly implemented in both inpatient and outpatient settings. There was an increase in isolation, grief, loss of lives, lack of

BY CHRISTOPHER WELLINS, MD, MS, FACP, RENEE FAY-LEBLANC, MD, FACP, AND COURTNEY PLADSEN, DNP Maine Medical Center (MMC) is a 700-bed tertiary care facility located in Portland, Maine, and is the anchor hospital of the nine-hospital MaineHealth System. In 2012 we developed the Long Stay Intervention Workgroup (LSIW) as a way of getting all the right stakeholders together

BY LAUREN O’CONNELL, LICSW, AND ROBERTA CAPP, MD, MHS Community health workers (CHWs) are non-clinical members of the community who usually share ethnicity, language and life experiences with the community members they serve (NIHLBI, 2023). Traditionally, CHWs are social and change agents; they reduce disparities and inequities by expanding knowledge and access to benefits and community services.

BY SUSANE HAO, RN, MSN, CLCP, AND THERESA HERNANDEZ, CCM Healthcare providers and case managers encounter patients who experience a combination of barriers related to social determinants of health (SDoH) that make it difficult for patients to manage their chronic medical conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), congestive heart failure (CHF), diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, hypertension

BY GARRY CARNEAL, JD, MA, JACK SHOEMAKER, MS, AND TOM WILSON, PhD Treating diseases of the brain is as important as treating any physical condition. Yet, U.S. health insurers have earned the dubious reputation of not covering behavioral health conditions (“BH,” aka mental health and substance use disorders) adequately when compared to physical health conditions (“PH,” aka medical/surgical care). From a population