On Monday, May 20, I represented the WellPower on a break out panel discussion at the Cleveland Clinic Patient Experience Summit entitled Enhancing the Patient Experience: Consumers with Schizophrenia and Bipolar 1 Disorder.  The panel was moderated by Monica Oss, Founder and CEO of OPEN MINDS and panelists included an Advanced Practice Nurse who teaches at the Yale School of Nursing, a CEO of a mental health center from the Cleveland area, a consumer from Toledo, Ohio and me.  The Summit was primarily attended by physicians and medical staff from across the nation.

Although the bulk of the Summit was reflective of medical practices, it was evident with this break out session that the concept of integrating behavioral health into primary and specialty practices is coming of age.  This panel discussion was created to provide current examples of programs within the behavioral health arena that have been designed to help improve patient experience.  The group talked about the welcoming experience into a practice or mental health center, the engagement and treatment process, the process of recovery and how providers can make a patient or consumer part of his or her treatment and recovery process.

I was able to share many of the things that we are doing at the WellPower including the hopeful, cheerful environment that we have created for our consumers when they come into the Recovery Center. We designed the space to create an atmosphere of hope by using bright and cheerful colors and creating openness with windows and lots of natural light. We even hire our consumers to greet everyone entering the building.

The panel discussed how treatment can only occur when the person feels comfortable and significant in their treatment environment and wants to come back and be a part of his or her treatment.  I described how we create a supportive environment through our process of collaborative treatment planning and documentation where the provider and consumer create the treatment plan and session notes together. And it is the little things like how our monitors are on swivel arms that help us in this process by allowing the consumer to see what is on the screen and actively participate.

I also had a chance to explain our recovery outcomes instruments that we developed which incorporate both the clinician perspective of how someone is doing as well as the consumer’s perspective of how he/she is doing. The feedback they give us about how helpful and recovery focused we are is helpful as we provide services.

There was special interest in how our electronic health record supports this process and how a clinician and consumer can sit together looking at the information from these instruments and see his/her actual answers and be guided by discussion questions right on the “electronic page.”

Kristi Mock, MSW, LCSW
Director, Adult Recovery Services
WellPower

Kristi oversees the WellPower’s (WellPower) services delivered to adults, which include case management and outpatient services for more than 3,700 consumers. She also oversees access to services, four adult services clinics, and two contract teams as well as an array of residential and housing services provided to consumers. She also directs local and federal grants and is responsible for maintaining relationships with collaborative partners, including homeless services providers and human services organizations.