The PA+PER’s Post

Summary: To ensure that health care professionals can access the mental health care they need, license and credentialing applications must omit questions about mental health and explicitly support the option of receiving mental health care.

Join us for an essential workshop hosted by the Michigan Mental Health Counselors Association (MMHCA) and led by Dr. Elizabeth M. Teklinski, PhD, LPC, NCC. This workshop, titled "Medicare 2024: Essential Updates and Strategies for LPCs," is designed to equip Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs) with the knowledge and tools necessary to navigate the latest changes in Medicare. As we move into 2024, significant updates to Medicare policies are set to impact mental health professionals. This workshop will provide a comprehensive overview of these changes, offering practical strategies for LPCs to effectively integrate these updates into their practice or find new opportunities in hospital, hospice, and healthcare settings. Whether you are a seasoned professional or new to the field, this workshop is crucial for staying informed and optimizing your service delivery under the new Medicare guidelines. What You Will Learn: Key Provisions in Medicare 2024: Understand the critical updates and their implications for LPCs. Enrollment Steps: Step-by-step guidance on how to enroll as a Medicare provider. Billing and Reimbursement: Detailed information on billing procedures, CPT codes, and reimbursement rates. Telehealth Services: Explore the expanded opportunities for providing telehealth services under Medicare. Career Prospects: Discover new career opportunities and expanded roles for LPCs in various healthcare settings. Documentation and Compliance: Best practices for maintaining compliance with Medicare requirements. "Incident To" Billing: Learn how to bill "incident to" services in outpatient settings. Professional Development: Insights into how MMHCA membership can support your professional growth through resources, advocacy, and networking. https://lnkd.in/gVjcdEy6

Join colleagues across the United States working to reduce barriers to clinicians seeking mental health care. One meaningful and achievable action is to remove job and credentialing application-related barriers to clinicians seeking mental health care. Most health care organizations ask clinical applicants — including nurses, doctors, respiratory therapists, podiatrists, and pharmacists — if they have or have had a mental health diagnosis or have ever sought mental health care even if having that diagnosis has not in any way affected their ability to do their job. When organizations remove these questions from their job and credentialing applications it helps clinicians overcome this common barrier to receiving care. Use the tools developed by and for clinicians as part of the IHI Leadership Alliance Helping Healthcare Heal Coalition to educate peers, professional society members, medical boards, and health care institutions about these issues. The Coalition’s publicly available resources include a sample email to send to your medical staff office or credentialing committee recommending this change. During Mental Health Awareness Month — and every month of the year — it is vital to help destigmatize getting mental health support when it is needed. https://lnkd.in/dVW4SyVx #mentalhealthmonth #mentalhealthawarenessmonth

Sharing this insightful article on "Burnout and Moral Resilience in Interdisciplinary Healthcare Professionals." It highlights the critical role of moral resilience in reducing burnout and turnover intentions, offering valuable insights into creating healthier, more sustainable clinical environments. This aligns with Rufayda - Care for Healthcare 's mission to support healthcare providers' mental health and well-being. Dive into this essential read to explore how fostering moral resilience can empower and sustain our healthcare heroes. Read more: https://lnkd.in/eDG-4_Uu #Healthcare #MentalHealth #BurnoutPre #Rufayda #Wellbeing #InterdisciplinaryCare #ClinicalPractice

Some key learning points contained in the report for all to take awareness of.

The AMA’s Public Hospital report card: mental health edition is a frightening read for me as a clinician and as a community member. At a time when health is losing staff rapidly due to burnout and other challenges post the Covid epidemic, the dedicated staff working in EDs increasingly need to manage patients with complex mental health issues who can become agitated when facing long waits for care. The AMA President says that “tragically, these overcrowded and stressful situations can contribute to unsafe psychosocial work environments and staff burnout, and in the worst cases, assaults on staff”. This is exactly what we hear from our customers too. ED staff need high-functioning duress systems to help safeguard staff and patient safety. Everyone in healthcare deserves to get and provide accessible care while feeling safe. https://lnkd.in/gWD9uDte #staffsafety #duress #digitalhealth

Call for improved investment in mental health nursing… https://lnkd.in/ghk27KYt Elimination of restrictive interventions: Is it achievable under the current mental healthcare landscape?

It is estimated by ACMHN that only half of the 25,000 nurses working in mental health have received adequate training, and the NMBA still confuses supervision with supervised practice for those who are starting out etc. I developed and piloted a ten week immersive and intensive course last year nationally which inspired participants and transformed practice, in trauma- informed reflective and relational psychotherapy practice. Nurses are hungry for this but hospitals can’t afford it especially in Victoria, and nurses often can’t get released from work one day a week for ten weeks. I agree that there needs to be a massive investment in MH nurses so that we can once more work to our full scope of practice as reflective, relational and trauma informed clinicians

Everyone deserves accessible healthcare while feeling and remaining safe. The Australian Medical Association (AMA)'s recent public hospital report – mental health edition, reveals record wait times for patients with poor mental health in emergency departments (ED), contributing to increased burnout, unsafe work environments and in extreme cases, assaults on staff. It is evident that a reliable duress system is essential in EDs to ensure healthcare staff’s safety so that they can work with confidence, knowing should anything happen they have the support they need. Read what Vickie Knight, our Clinical Services Executive, has shared on the matter and how our Reach mobile duress solution is crucial in keeping healthcare staff protected in hospitals across Australia and New Zealand. #mentalhealth #staffsafety #duress #digitalhealth #accesstocare 

Kudos to Dr Tom Gedman for an eye-opening letter! Whether embracing "speed medicine" for efficiency or adopting a slower, more considered approach, it appears neither path consistently leads to contentment. Speed medicine may offer a sense of efficiency but can leave one feeling hollow by day's end. Meanwhile, a slower-paced practice might provide deep purpose and fulfillment, yet often comes with longer hours and modest earnings. It's fascinating yet challenging how our healthcare system manages to evoke a sense of dissatisfaction across such different approaches. Let's dive deeper into how we can navigate these dynamics for a more fulfilling practice. #HealthcareSystem #MedicalProfession #SpeedMedicine #WorkLifeBalance #PhysicianWellness #HealthcareChallenges