Health Innovations                                                                                           May 2017
SIM appreciates Mental Health Awareness Month

Integrating behavioral and physical health is hard work yet there are a growing number of SIM practices that are delivering “whole-person care.” A key component to success is awareness and stigma reduction, which is one reason we are highlighting Mental Health Awareness Month. It’s also the reason we continue to highlight successes among cohort-1 practices on the website and social media channels (see bottom of this email for social media links). This issue of the newsletter includes a short story about a 13-year-old’s experience that illustrates the value of delivering whole-person care and supporting providers in this important work. We will share more examples of SIM successes during the month of May and beyond and hope you will support “Let’s Talk Colorado,” a SIM-funded campaign developed by local public health agencies to reduce stigma. Learn more and spread the word using hashtags #LetsTalkCO/#HablemosCo.

We’d also like to take this opportunity to correct the number of applications reported in the April issue of the newsletter. The SIM team is pleased to report that 225 practices applied for cohort-2. We will share more information in the coming weeks about cohort 2, which will start its SIM work in September and are thrilled to see such strong interest from the provider community.
Integrated care helps teen

Success stories help illustrate the value of integrating behavioral and physical health. Read this short example of a 13-year-old’s experience with whole-person care and how it helped rekindle hope for the patient and his parents.

Read the full story
SIM funds new workforce
Regional Health Connectors (RHCs), a new healthcare workforce that is partially funded by SIM, are helping practices connect patients to valuable community resources. Listen to a brief discussion of how they connect the dots for care teams across the state in a SIM podcast Innovation Insights. Subscribe to our SoundCloud profile to listen to all SIM podcasts as they are released.
Defining SIM’s investment in RHCs
You have heard a lot about regional health connectors (RHCs), who are connecting Colorado practices with local resources. Get more details about how RHCs work with practices to improve health outcomes in this one-page overview.


SIM data: See what's happened in year-1 of practice transformation
Check out the new SIM data hub page on the website to stay updated on all SIM data as it is released.
QPP res ources for providers

Watch seven short videos that outline resources for clinicians in small, rural, and underserved practices to get started with the Quality Payment Program (QPP). Also, feel free to read the Colorado QPP Coalition "5 Fast Facts in 5 Minutes" with information about when you’ll hear about clinician eligibility: 

If you have questions about the QPP or how to participate in the merit-based incentive payment system (MIPS), join the Colorado QPP Coalition for an open forum/office hours May 23 from 12:15 p.m. to 1:15 p.m. MST.

Primary care providers can learn more about the alternative payment methodology (APM) from the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing during a webinar May 24 at 12:00 p.m. Register to learn how the new payment methodology will work and what you need to know and do.

Help reduce mental health stigma. Participate in   #LetsTalkCO  /  #HablemosCo  a new, local public health agency campaign that is funded by the Colorado State Innovation Model during Mental Health Awareness Month and beyond. Learn more and spread the word: letstalkco.org.
SIM wants to hear your stories
Help us tell the story of why integrated behavioral and physical healthcare matters. Please send examples of how receiving or delivering this type of “whole-person care” has influenced your life. The SIM team is highlighting changes practices are making and how those changes influence patient care, patient experience and patient outcomes. If you’re willing to share your story to showcase the ways in which integrated care improves lives, email us at: Heather.Grimshaw@state.co.us
SIM office is hiring
We are looking for motivated and experienced individuals to join our team.  Click here  to view all open job postings and apply before the deadline.
Suggested reading
Read this new report on the association between a major depressive episode and chronic conditions such as diabetes, asthma, and obesity. Along with the complete report, you can also access one-page "Spotlights" and accompanying infographics.
As the debate continues over pre-existing conditions, some people pay thousands of dollars for treatment.
Complex care programs across the country are increasingly using community health workers (CHWs) to cultivate strong relationships with patients and deliver culturally competent education, care coordination, and system navigation assistance among other supports.