Creating Confidence In The Quality Of Behavioral Healthcare By Validating Clinical Outcomes

Behavioral health clinics that advance measurement-based care are better informed about the clinical outcomes experienced by their patient populations. These organizations are also positioned to demonstrate their delivery of high-quality care to key stakeholders and partner with health plans in value-based care arrangements.

Yet behavioral healthcare has been slow to adopt measurement-based care which:

• Captures the effectiveness of care provided
• Informs timely adjustment to clinical treatment
• Supports patient-centered treatment
• Drives improved clinical outcomes
• Promotes ongoing quality improvement

The Opportunity

RTI Health Advance partnered with a not-for-profit, national network of outpatient mental health clinics providing care for military service members and their families. We conducted an objective, independent evaluation of its structure for assessing and reporting clinical outcomes. Our engagement included validating their patient clinical outcomes against comparable population benchmarks for depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Our Approach

In collaboration with our client, we focused on 3 actions to substantiate their patient clinical outcomes:

1. Validate measurement-based care clinical-outcome instruments

We conducted an in-depth review of peer-reviewed literature to determine if the client's clinical screening and patient-reported outcome instruments are scientifically valid and reliable. We further recommended additional measures predictive of treatment outcomes to provide a deeper level of insight into clinical and individual outcomes.

2. Evaluate administration of clinical-outcome instruments

After collecting multi-site, real-world data on clinical administration of the measure instruments, we revealed opportunities to enhance operational support and improve communication across affiliate clinics.

3. Benchmark Patient-Population Clinical Outcomes

We identified and compared the client population's clinical outcomes against relevant population benchmarks to ensure alignment with evidence-based practices in patient-reported outcome measurement of clinically significant response and clinical remission.

Findings

RTI Health Advance's independent evaluation confirmed that the:

• Client's measurement-based care framework was scientifically sound and rooted in evidence-based practices
• Patient-reported outcome instruments used were valid and reliable
• Treatment outcomes for depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder were consistently better when compared to relevant population benchmarks, affirming the high-quality care delivered to their patient population

Outcomes

Our client now has the evidence needed to demonstrate leadership maturity in behavioral health measure-based care, which positions the client as a leader within the behavioral healthcare delivery system and advances their capability to develop value-based care partnerships.