PATHWAYS CCBHC-IA PROJECT - Pathways, Inc. is a community behavioral health center serving ten counties in northeast Kentucky including Bath, Boyd, Carter, Elliott, Greenup, Lawrence, Menifee, Montgomery, Morgan, and Rowan. Pathways 55+ year history of delivery quality, comprehensive behavioral health services – mental health, intellectual and developmental disabilities support services, and substance use disorder prevention, treatment, recovery support, and harm reduction – positioned it well to embrace the tenants of the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) model. Pathways was one of four Community Mental Health Centers chosen to participate in Kentucky’s CCBHC program. On December 1, 2021, Pathways was notified by the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services/Department for Medicaid Services that it received its CCBHC certification for 01/01/2022-06/30/2022. The Cabinet for Health and Family Services/Department for Medicaid Services provided certification by Access Sites and Pathways received certification for 13 sites. One of the 13 Access Sites is located in Greenup County, the focus of the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic – Improvement and Advancement grant. Needs assessment is a critical component of the CCBHC process. As a part of the needs assessment process conducted by the state, Greenup County was identified as the county of greatest need in Pathways ten-county catchment region. The overall behavioral health capacity score for Greenup County is 756:1 (number of persons per mental health provider), compared to an overall region rate of 297:1, a state rate of 494:1, and the top tenth percentile of US counties rate of 310:1 (source: 2019 County Health Rankings). According to the Health Resources & Services Administration, Greenup County 3.3 primary care practitioners to meet the population to practitioner target ratio and short 6.17 mental health practitioners to meet the population to practitioner target ratio. While the county is only 354 square miles, the east and west portions of the county are worlds apart in terms of culture, economics, educational level, and access to healthcare. Physical health data, mental health data, and social determinants support the need for expanded (improved and advanced) CCBHC services. The Pathways CCBHC-IA Project seeks to establish a primary care/behavioral health clinic in the city of Greenup, Kentucky, in year one and add a primary care/behavioral health clinic in the city of South Shore, Kentucky, in year two of the funding. Each clinic will house an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse, a Registered Nurse, a Care Coordinator, a Case Manager, a mental Health clinician, a Peer Support Specialist, and a Customer Service Representative. Each clinic will offer primary physical care as well as behavioral health care including medication for opioid use disorder. Pathways will provide all nine core CCBHC services out of each office and believes these services will result in a minimum of 1,900 individuals receiving person-centered, accessible care. As a result, we believe our consumers, often with the most need and fewest resources, will report (and we will document) improved mental health and/or physical health outcomes. Comprehensive care is the key to a consumer’s wellbeing and CCBHC’s success.
