Physical health and mental health
This mortality data demands that the physical health and mental health fields address this crisis.
The national Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) reports that although mental health medical conditions are highly interconnected, medical and mental health systems need to be integrated in many ways to support effective care.
SAMHSA – Behavioral Health is Essential to Health; Treatment is Effective; and People Recover. Visit the SAMHSA website: http://www.samhsa.gov/
Treatable mental or medical illnesses are often not detected or diagnosed properly and effective services are often not provided. Improved mental health care at the interface of general medicine and mental health requires educated consumers and providers; effective detection, diagnosis and monitoring of common mental disorders; valid performance criteria for care at the interface of general medicine and mental health; care management protocols that match treatment intensity to clinical outcomes; effective specialty mental health support for general medical providers; and financing mechanisms for evidence-based models of care. Successful models exist for improving the collaboration between medical and mental health providers (Unützer, 2006).