Elevate Behavioral Health Pinellas

The Pinellas County Integrated Care Alliance (PICA) engaged KPMG in December 2019 to undergo a roughly three-month project to scan the behavioral health system, interview stakeholders and review leading practices. They then brought the County a new vision to improve the system of care around behavioral health in Pinellas County. The strategic report, “Elevate Behavioral Health,” is the foundational step in moving the County in a new direction in patient-centric services, enhanced governance, funding and performance management aimed at improved outcomes for our residents.

Recommendations from this project included:

1. Establishing a systemic performance management approach in terms of access, quality, capacity, productivity, and outcomes—grounded on a Optimal Data Set (ODS) across all providers, allowing for benchmarking comparison and trend analysis. This requires establishing a contractual MDS requirement for all providers arising from collective development of an MDS with behavioral health funders within the County.
2. Establishing a robust Coordinated Access Model that allows for increased transparency in how clients, families, caregivers, and professionals can access the right services within the system. This requires various enabling elements including a 1-800 number; standardized screening, triage and scheduling practices; and an evaluation of the current systems in place by providers to ensure interoperability and exchange of information to allow for a consolidated view of consumer demand, level of need, available capacity, and access to care.