Tulsa Regional Mental Health Plan leaders partner with national firm to create roadmap for mental health improvements

Local mental health professionals and community leaders announced a partnership with a national research firm on Thursday to help create a road map for improving mental health outcomes in the Tulsa area.

The Tulsa Regional Mental Health Plan is a 10-year community-wide effort to focus on regional mental health improvements and includes a leadership council with philanthropy, business, university, state and nonprofit representation.

The initiative, led by the University of Tulsa and funded by the Anne and Henry Zarrow Foundation, is partnering with the Urban Institute to develop a plan to provide better mental health care at a lower cost to the community.

"This is no small issue. We have a big problem and it will not go away on its own," said Dr. Gerard Clancy, TU vice president for health affairs, dean of the Oxley College of Health Sciences and chair of the steering committee.

"Our community is facing a crisis, but we are taking the steps to implement effective long-term, focused solutions for that crisis," he said.

Oklahoma has the second highest percentage of populations with mental illness and substance abuse disorders.

The majority of those in need of treatment go untreated.

"Part of our challenge lies in our ability to come up with a new mental health delivery system," said Dr. Jeffrey Alderman, director of the TU Institute for Health Care Delivery Services. "We know that something has to change."

Urban Institute's research will focus on individuals from birth to 65 with mental illness - with and without co-occurring substance abuse issues.

The study will use data from patients and their caregivers, local thought leaders and government, and health and nonprofit organizations.

"Our plan is to document the needs related to mental illness, assess the resources we have in place to meet those needs as well as gaps and inefficiencies in our current system and to map out how Tulsa can move forward to provide a well-functioning, prevention-oriented, recovery-centered, evidence-based and cost-effective continuum of care for those affected by mental illness and substance abuse," Alderman said.

The goal is to have the 10-year plan completed and ready for implementation by January 2018.

Potential recommendations from the report could include cross-sector alignment, policy changes, addressing behavioral health workforce shortages and increasing funding for behavioral health services.

Some of the early findings from the work on the initiative have been eye-opening, Clancy said.

In particular, families that have adequate health-care coverage are still having difficulties finding mental health care.

"Even those with resources are struggling with getting the needs met for their family members," Clancy said. "It's quite disheartening."

This initiative is considered a "phase two" project following on the success of the Lewin Report 10 years ago, which outlined health disparities between north and south Tulsa.

The report led to four new clinics, 37 new physicians and a host of new programs in north Tulsa that ultimately reduced a 14-year gap in life expectancy to 11 years.

"It's time to turn our attention to the entire mental health and addiction treatment system," Clancy said. "Our state and region are facing budget cuts in just about every area, but we cannot wish those problems away and we cannot depend on nonprofits and philanthropic entities to do it alone."