From Research to Reality: Implementing First Episode Treatment in a Community Mental Health Center
Poster C125, Wednesday, October%2010, 11:30%20am%20-%201:00%20pm, Essex%20Ballroom
Carla Gerber1, Coleen Hudkins1, Corrina Falkenstein1; 1PeaceHealth Oregon
The purpose of this poster is to discuss the feasibility of implementing a research program into Standard of Care in a community behavioral health clinic. PeaceHealth in Eugene, Oregon was one of 17 sites that provided the Navigate program as part of the Recovery After Initial Schizophrenia Episode (RAISE) research study. Following the conclusion of the recruitment for the study, PeaceHealth committed to extend such early intervention services for the community. To do this, PeaceHealth adopted a hybrid of the Early Assessment and Support Alliance (EASA) and the Navigate program. The goal was to carry forward the positive outcomes experienced during RAISE in a non-research setting. Reasons to do this included increasing the reach of the program to a broader population, and to eliminate the delay until research findings are usually made available. We will discuss the successes we experienced in this effort to integrate research with clinical practice, such as increasing the number of patients who had access to specialized first episode treatment including individual therapy, medication management, vocational/educational support, family education and therapy, nursing, occupational therapy and peer support. We will also discuss the challenges we faced, such as dealing with limited resources for training staff and working in a less structured environment than what is found within research trials. Lastly, we will also provide recommendations for disseminating future programs.
Topic Area: Translational Research