Kaiser Permanente is a Fair360, formerly DiversityInc Top 50 Hall of Fame company.
Don Mordecai, MD, National Leader for Mental Health and Wellness at Kaiser Permanente shared the company’s thoughts on advancing mental health crisis care through public policy.
The newly implemented 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline supports individuals seeking help during times of crisis.
Mordecai noted that this is only the beginning of a longer journey to support mental health care, which requires seamless integration between public mental health crisis services and clinicians in health care settings.
“We are working closely with state officials to coordinate follow-up appointments for members who call 988 or their local crisis line. We are also increasing the number of behavioral health consultants in primary care,” he said. “Each is a step toward bridging the gap between immediate crisis response and ongoing mental health care, acknowledging that one cannot function without the other.”
Mordecai also suggests expanding access to crisis services, creating mobile crisis teams and measuring outcomes to improve mental health crisis care.
