New Programs to Improve Behavioral Health Care in WNC

AdventHealth Hendersonville Forms New Program to Improve Behavioral Health Care in WNC

By Beth Cassidy, DNP, MSN, NE-BC

BEHAVIORAL HEALTH NAVIGATORS

We applied for and received a Duke Endowment for a Behavioral Health Navigator (BHN) program to assist with our behavioral health patients in the Emergency Department. The navigators are nurses with a strong behavioral health background. The program was developed to improve the management of the patients as they present to our ED. The navigators assist with their disposition, whether it is admission to inpatient, referral to another facility or discharge to outpatient care. The BHN works closely with the behavioral health providers to determine the best course for the patient. The program has been in effect since March 17th and has already shown a positive impact for the behavioral health patients in our ED. Most notable is the decrease in the length of stay for our behavioral health patients in the ED which translates to their receiving the care they need in a more efficient timeframe.

EMERGENCY DEPARTMENT

In June of this year, the ED received its Bronze level accreditation from the American College of Emergency Physicians or ACEP. The organization offers three levels of accreditation for geriatric readiness for quality care for the geriatric population. Our ED met all criteria and received our Bronze level after completing staff education, policy development and adding additional minor equipment to our ED inventory. We are the only ED in western NC with this accreditation and there ate less than two dozen facilities in the state with ACEP recognition. Our ED will be applying for Silver in 2021 then we will being going for the GOLD!