Sam, now in his late 20s, has experienced behavioral health challenges since he was a child and has been hospitalized for mental health needs and drug addiction numerous times during his adult life. Like many people living with mental health needs, Sam’s treatment is a lifelong journey requiring various inpatient and outpatient services at different stages. This can be especially challenging for low-income people like Sam and those experiencing homelessness who rely on Medicaid. One in five adults nationwide experience mental illness, and nearly one-third of those people do not receive the treatment needed.
While approximately 4% of the general population of adults have a severe mental illness, the National Alliance on Mental Illness estimates that 45% of the homeless population experience a form of mental illness, with 25% of this population suffering from severe mental illness.
“It not only benefits individuals with mental health needs but also their communities and society as a whole to offer high-quality, affordable services,” says Dr. Katie Gilligan, chief medical officer at Compass Health, a community-based behavioral health care agency serving primarily low-income and homeless individuals in northwest Washington who qualify for Medicaid. “Through offering a suite of triage, inpatient and outpatient services, we can help to prevent mental health crises and homelessness, keep people in their jobs, enable families to stay intact and ease the load on law enforcement and other community partners.”
Integrated spectrum of care makes the difference
When mental illness is deeply connected to the life challenges a person is facing, an integrated spectrum of care can have a powerful impact. After one of Sam’s hospitalizations, he was connected to Compass Health’s Program of Assertive Community Treatment, an evidence-based, intensive outpatient treatment program that helps adults with intensive behavioral health needs overcome barriers to recovery.
Experts suggest looking for the following services in intensive outpatient mental health programs:
- Clinicians to help with case management, including frequent client visits.
- Peer support, both individual and group.
- Psychiatric support.
- Coordination with community partners providing housing, medical care, financial and vocational programs.
PACT’s multidisciplinary teams include mental health professionals, psychiatrists, nurses, clinicians, peer counselors and substance use disorder specialists. These teams deliver comprehensive services to clients, most of whom are seen several times a week or multiple times per day, to promote stabilization and recovery. PACT teams also work alongside other community partners to connect clients to other necessary supports to encourage healthy, independent living.
Since enrolling in PACT, Sam has only been hospitalized once and he has achieved sobriety. Through his perseverance and resilience, and with the help of his support team, Sam has paved his path to recovery.
This kind of intensive support can be the difference to truly improving quality of life for individuals with behavioral health needs. Compass Health’s Broadway Campus Redevelopment, slated for completion in summer 2025, will help make these kinds of services more available. This state-of-the-art facility is designed to deliver 24-hour crisis care to those experiencing behavioral health crises and a spectrum of inpatient and intensive outpatient services to promote easier access to a continuum of care.
For Sam, and many others, a full continuum of care — from mental health crisis services to sustained, long-term supports make a real impact on quality of life. “It’s critical to provide a wide array of services that meet each individual where they are in their mental health journey,” Gilligan says.
Compass Health is Northwest Washington’s behavioral health care leader. From comprehensive mental health treatment to crisis prevention and intervention, supportive housing, children’s services and more, we serve people of all ages throughout Snohomish, Skagit, Island, San Juan and Whatcom counties.
