Overview

The time constraints associated with a typical behavioral health clinic visit make it challenging to address all of a patient’s specific needs. The use of an automated measurement-based care screening and outcomes system saves time for clinicians and improves health care outcomes for patients (eg. Duncan, 2021). There are a number of technology platforms on the market, all aimed at collecting patient data to help identify problem areas and assess the outcome of a care team’s interventions. The future of effective team-based care, especially for complex populations, involves more frequent patient data collection with less of it happening just at the point of care (eg. text messages with links, EHR portals, and websites).

Implementing a technology-based tracking system can feel daunting, but there are more options than ever to fit specific clinical use cases. CFHA does not align with or advocate for any particular brand, however, because CFHA is missionally invested in supporting evidence-based practices such as measurement-based care, our hope is to raise awareness of the growing options for implementing tools that help clinics take better care of their patients and families.

The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s latest handbook also supports the use of health IT in primary care practices. You can learn more here.

Considerations When Choosing a Platform

• Referral management
• Direct-to-patient survey links
• Care management tracking
• Patient portal
• Integrations with EHR

Options on the Market*

*CFHA does not endorse any commercial products. The companies listed are for reference only.