Project Title: Integration of Mental and Behavioral Health Services into the HIV Primary Care Clinic Applicant Organization: Our Lady of the Lake Hospital, Inc., 5000 Hennessy Blvd. Baton Rouge, LA 70808 Project Director: Angie J. Brown, (225) 768-5791, angelee.brown@fmolhs.org, www.fmolhs.org FY 2022 RWHAP Part C Capacity Development Program, HIV Care Innovation Our Lady of the Lake Hospital, Inc. (OLOL) Early Intervention Clinic (EIC) provides care to approximately 1,325 persons who are living with HIV/AIDS (PLWH). OLOL acquired the free-standing provider based EIC in 2013 and immediately became the provider of the largest volume of comprehensive HIV/AIDS primary medical care and support services in the Baton Rouge Transitional Grant Area (BRTGA). The EIC is a Ryan White funded clinic and provides outpatient ambulatory primary medical and nursing care, health education, nutritional counselling, specialty services, psychological, social services and access to HIV outpatient formulary medications to infants, children, adolescents, adults and pregnant women who are HIV+. The nine-parish (county) service area, referred to as Metro Baton Rouge area or BRTGA includes Ascension, East Baton Rouge, East Feliciana, Iberville, Livingston, Pointe Coupee, St. Helena, West Baton Rouge and West Feliciana parishes In keeping with that mission, the EIC patient population is overwhelmingly minority and indigent with 93% being African-American and 90% who are below the 300% poverty level. The current viral suppression rate of the clinic population is 88.6%. The objective of this project is to integrate behavioral health, including mental health and substance use disorders, with primary care to ensure coordination of care for both services. Integration of behavioral health and primary care services can serve to 1) identify behavioral health diagnoses early, allowing rapid treatment; 2) ensure treatments for medical and behavioral health conditions are comp
atible and do not cause adverse effects; and 3) de-stigmatize treatment for behavioral health diagnoses. Studies also show that one in five primary care patients will be diagnosed with a mental health disorder and 70% of all primary care visits are related to a behavioral health issue. This program is vitally important to the health of our population and community. This plan has the potential to fully support itself and the investments in return provide healthier patients and a healthier community. Funding amount request: $150,000 Funding preference: Underserved Populations East Baton Rouge Parish is designated a medically underserved area (MUA/P ID: 01389) by the Health Resources and Services Administration. This is especially the case among our low-income residents for mental health services, as evidenced by our Health Professional Shortage Area (HPSA) designation regarding mental health providers (Low Income Population HSPA, HPSA ID: 7227633610).