Five Levels of Primary Care/Behavioral Healthcare Collaboration

AS PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE toward the development of feasible and effective models of collaboration and integrative care, a need has developed for a model to delineate the degree of collaboration achievable in different kinds of settings. The Levels of Systemic Collaboration model describes the degree of involvement and sophistication in collaborative healthcare between mental health and other health professionals, particularly medical physicians and nurses. The model shows the extent to which collaboration already occurs and indicates the capacity for increased collaboration in the healthcare setting as a whole, more than as a particular interaction between a physician and a therapist. The possibility for collaboration in certain cases will depend on the nature of the case, the collaborative skills of specific providers, and the collaborative capacity (level) of the healthcare setting and team. The model refers to the systemic and organizational issues that facilitate or impede collaboration.