This project directly addresses the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) Mental Health and Wellness commission priority to provide "better access to high quality, coordinated and consistent service and care between agencies, service providers and across geographical boundaries."
The project goals are to evaluate the delivery and sustainability of a brief trauma-focused treatment, Prolonged Exposure for Primary Care (PE-PC), an evidence-based intervention for PTSD, when delivered via telehealth to patients enrolled at CHCs in Michigan. CHCs serve 680,000 Michigan residents across 260 delivery sites. Ninety-two percent of CHC patients have incomes below 200 percent of the federal poverty level. Approximately 16 percent of CHC patients are uninsured, and more than 53 percent rely on Medicaid for their insurance. Thus, providing PTSD treatment to CHC patients will improve care to Medicaid enrollees and promote Mental Health and Wellness commission priorities of developing a trauma informed system that includes implementation of evidence-based trauma-informed care.
To address the high burden of PTSD in Medicaid enrollees in Michigan CHCs, we plan to deliver PE-PC to patients in CHCs. This treatment consists of four 30-minute sessions of in-vivo and narrative exposure, with content drawn from the PE model. Recently published efficacy data from a randomized controlled trial showed that PE-PC significantly reduced PTSD and depression symptoms as compared to usual primary care treatment. These changes were maintained at 6-month follow-up.
