An Industry-Wide Call for Reliable Patient Data

At every level of addiction and mental health care, treatment providers are facing added responsibility to document the impact of their services. Long gone are the days when payers and regulators settled for anecdotal reports of patient outcome, or ignored inconsistencies in data reporting. Providers are experiencing unprecedented demand for accountability in measuring the effect of their care.

Likewise, the umbrella groups that represent provider organizations have devoted resources to sound outcome evaluation at a level never seen before in the industry. The National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers’ (NAATP’s) Foundation for Recovery Science and Education (FoRSE) outcomes project deserves special mention here, as it is now collecting data from more than 100 treatment centers on level-of-care services and patient outcomes.

FoRSE data has made a strong case for the benefits of extended stays in substance use treatment (longer than 30 days at any level of care), showing that they result in more substance-free days, less hospitalization and enhanced quality of life for patients.

The effort to improve patient data collection also is extending to programs that mainly serve the publicly insured. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) announced over the summer that it is streamlining its patient-level performance data tool for federal grantees. Based on providers’ feedback that some questions the agency was asking about their patients were unnecessarily intrusive, SAMHSA has been gathering public comments about a revised process that will reduce providers’ reporting burden while still offering sound information about their progress in achieving desired behavioral health outcomes.

We at Sigmund Software give credit to those who have advanced these initiatives. They reflect a direction we have promoted for the industry for some time. Our behavioral health EHR solution offers a level of data collection and reporting capability that keeps clinical staff consistently informed on what they need to know to guide treatment. Our tools seamlessly integrate with the quality-driven initiatives that are elevating the behavioral health field and improving patient care. Talk to us about how we can partner with you to advance your treatment goals.