Integrative Behavioral Health Field Clinical Program (IBH-FCP) Scope - UKRF Healthcare Workforce Collaborative: Kentucky Workforce INitiative for our State (KY-WINS)

Health care in the United States is becoming increasingly complex and multifarious. This complexity, at least in part, can impact one’s ability to access care. Factors such as evolving policy edicts (e.g., Affordable Care Act of 2010), fragmented service continuums, and shrinking work and labor forces contribute to these complexities. Indeed, responding to these challenges will take creative solutions grounded in diverse partnerships and practices. Against that backdrop, there is increasing recognition about the need for integrated behavioral health (IBH) care approaches. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality defined such an approach as: Care that results from a practice team of primary care and behavioral health clinicians, working together with patients and families, using a systematic and cost-effective approach to provide patient-centered care for a defined population. (p. 9) Adopting IBH models does require shifts in practice cultures. Within these workspaces, it is imperative that practitioners develop competencies rooted in systems-based health, which are germane to adeptly meeting patient needs. Despite the promise of IBH in addressing healthcare challenges, sustainable models in the mental and behavioral health care space are nominal. The College of Social Work (CoSW) - Integrative Behavioral Health Field Clinical Program (IBH-FCP) seeks to address this limitation. The overarching aim of IBH-FCP (pilot) is to foster a robust pathway for the education, training, and development of social work clinicians throughout the Commonwealth, thus improving access to needed care. IBH-FCP will meet this aim by proffering a comprehensive, systemic, and multi-phased dynamic training continuum comprised of four distinct, yet interconnected components: (1) Specialized coursework for students matriculating into healthcare positions; (2) Targeted field clinical placements; (3) Experiential learning experiences, to include pre- placement virtual simulation; and, (4) IBH supervision training and credentialing. IBH-FCP’s education and training approach is rooted in the use of evidenced-informed practices and tools, adept and developmentally appropriate clinical-based simulations, and participatory- based collaboration models that allow participants to demonstrate and test skills in a safe, structured environment. The program leverages existing resources associated with CoSW bridge programming, while simultaneously contributing to new program capacity that will be exponentially impactful.