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Gabrielian S, Jones AL, Hoge AE, deRussy AJ, Kim YI, Montgomery AE, Blosnich JR, Gordon AJ, Gelberg L, Austin EL, Pollio D, Holmes SK, Varley AL, Kertesz SG. Enhancing Primary Care Experiences for Homeless Patients with Serious Mental Illness: Results from a National Survey. J Prim Care Community Health 2021; 12:2150132721993654. [PMID: 33543675 PMCID: PMC7871055 DOI: 10.1177/2150132721993654] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Objectives: Patients experiencing homelessness (PEH) with serious mental illness (SMI) have poor satisfaction with primary care. We assessed if primary care teams tailored for homeless patients (Homeless-Patient Aligned Care Teams (H-PACTs)) provide this population with superior experiences than mainstream primary care and explored whether integrated behavioral health and social services were associated with favorable experiences. Methods: We surveyed VA PEH with SMI (n = 1095) to capture the valence of their primary care experiences in 4 domains (Access/Coordination, Patient-Clinician Relationships, Cooperation, and Homeless-Specific Needs). We surveyed clinicians (n = 52) from 29 H-PACTs to elucidate if their clinics had embedded mental health, addiction, social work, and/or housing services. We counted these services in each H-PACT (0-4) and classified H-PACTs as having high (3-4) versus low (0-2) service integration. We controlled for demographics, housing history, and needs in comparing H-PACT versus mainstream experiences; and experiences in high versus low integration H-PACTs. Results: Among respondents, 969 (91%) had complete data and 626 (62%) were in H-PACTs. After covariate adjustment, compared to mainstream respondents, H-PACT respondents were more likely (P < .01) to report favorable experiences (AORs = 1.7-2.1) and less likely to report unfavorable experiences (AORs = 0.5-0.6) in all 4 domains. Of 29 H-PACTs, 27.6% had high integration. High integration H-PACT respondents were twice as likely as low integration H-PACT respondents to report favorable access/coordination experiences (AOR = 1.7). Conclusions: Homeless-tailored clinics with highly-integrated services were associated with better care experiences among PEH with SMI. These observational data suggest that tailored primary care with integrated services may improve care perceptions among complex patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonya Gabrielian
- VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System, Los Angeles, CA, USA.,University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Audrey L Jones
- VA Salt Lake City Health Care System, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.,University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - April E Hoge
- Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | | | - Young-Il Kim
- Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, USA.,University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - Ann Elizabeth Montgomery
- Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, USA.,University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - John R Blosnich
- VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.,University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Adam J Gordon
- VA Salt Lake City Health Care System, Salt Lake City, UT, USA.,University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Lillian Gelberg
- VA Greater Los Angeles Health Care System, Los Angeles, CA, USA.,University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Erika L Austin
- Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, USA.,University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | - David Pollio
- University of Alabama at Birmingham College of Letters and Sciences, Birmingham, AL, USA
| | | | | | - Stefan G Kertesz
- Birmingham VA Medical Center, Birmingham, AL, USA.,University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Medicine, Birmingham, AL, USA
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