The Providence Center and Providence Community Health Centers Open RI’s First Integrated Primary and Behavioral Health Clinic
Providence Community Health Centers at North Main Integrated Primary and Behavioral Healthcare furthers the mission of both organizations to provide comprehensive health care that meets the needs of the whole person
June 10, 2010 (PROVIDENCE, RI) –On Friday, June 10, 2011, The Providence Center and Providence Community Health Centers held a grand opening event to celebrate the opening of Rhode Island’s first integrated primary and behavioral health clinic.
“Providence Community Health Centers at North Main provides the best behavioral and primary health care to people who need help but normally cannot access it,” said Dr. Dale Klatzker, President/CEO of The Providence Center. “This partnership ensures that there is no wrong door to healthcare.”
The clinic, located on site at The Providence Center’s main facility, 528 North Main Street, Providence, Rhode Island, will fill an essential gap in health care service delivery by providing consistent access to primary health care for people who suffer from behavioral health problems.
“Providence Community Health Centers is excited to see our long-term partnership with The Providence Center come to fruition in a concrete way that serves many of Providence’s most vulnerable residents,” said Merrill Thomas, President/ CEO of Providence Community Health Centers.
(Left to right) Providence City Council President Michael Solomon, Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, Representative David Cicilline, Lieutenant Governor Elizabeth Roberts and Craig Stenning (far right), director of the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, assist Dale K. Klatzker and Merrill Thomas in officially opening Providence Community Health Centers at North Main.Patients at the clinic receive coordinated physical, mental health and substance abuse care under one roof with access to community supports that promote a healthy lifestyle. Services include primary care services by a skilled, compassionate primary care physician and staff; primary care support from a Providence Center behavioral health liaison who works with the primary care physician to address each patient’s unique mental health and substance use needs; shared medical and mental health records for efficient communication; access to The Providence Center’s behavioral health and wellness programs. “The partnership brings together the most successful elements of national models to create a cohesive, inclusive system designed to provide access, long-term integration of behavioral health and primary healthcare and preventative services” said Dr. Nelly Burdette, Director of Integrated Care at The Providence Center.
People with behavioral health problems are less likely to have a primary care physician and more likely to have chronic health problems. Together, these factors lead to people with mental illness or substance use disorders living an average of 25 years less than the average American. The new clinic promises to help reduce the disparities that people with behavioral health problems face when accessing healthcare and to be a first step towards helping people with behavioral health problems live longer, healthier lives. This innovative approach to health care is in keeping with national models that treat the whole person as an effective means of reducing chronic disease and improving health management skills.
The Providence Community Health Center at North Main is partially funded through a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
The Providence Center is at the forefront of innovative approaches to behavioral health care designed to meet the changing needs of the more than 10,000 people served each year. Since The Providence Center opened its doors in 1969, it has been a community fixture, providing people from all walks of life with mental health and substance use services in their homes, schools and neighborhoods. In addition to comprehensive high quality behavioral health services, The Providence Center gives people the tools they need to succeed. Through 39 programs and wraparound services, including food and housing, job training, legal services, primary health care and wellness activities, The Providence Center helps the people it serves to succeed.
Established in 1968, PCHC provides neighborhood-based, high quality and accessible primary medical care for residents of Providence and surrounding communities, regardless of their ability to pay. PCHC operates ten sites in Providence including health centers, a school-based health clinic, a dental clinic, an STD clinic and a clinic for the homeless. PCHC served 36,789 patients in 2010. PCHC is the state’s largest primary community health center provider.