Health Information Technology and Mental Health: The Way Forward - 2010

Project Name

Health Information Technology and Mental Health: The Way Forward

Principal Investigator

Mullican, Charlotte

Organization

Professional and Scientific Associates

Contract Number

290-09-000027U

Project Period

June 2009 – October 2010

AHRQ Funding Amount

$168,699

Summary Status as of

October 2010, Completion of Contract

Target Population: Not Applicable

Summary: This contract will convene a workshop to develop an agenda to guide future research in and facilitate partnerships between the mental health and health information technology (IT) communities. Participants include the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s (AHRQ’s) Center for Primary Care, Prevention, and Clinical Partnerships, and the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). The goals are to: establish what is known about the impact of health IT on improvements in mental health care interventions, coordination, fairness, and cost-effectiveness; identify gaps in knowledge; and determine infrastructure needs for under-resourced settings.

Deliverables include a white paper created by an outside technical expert panel (TEP) to inform the content of the workshop. The TEP will convene at an AHRQ-facilitated meeting. The draft white paper will be revised and finalized based on input from workshop participants. The contractor will help disseminate the paper upon completion and will work closely with AHRQ and NIMH to establish a detailed marketing plan.

Project Objective:

Establish what is known about the impact of health IT on improvements in mental health care interventions, coordination, fairness, and cost-effectiveness; identify gaps in knowledge; and determine infrastructure needs for under-resourced settings. (Achieved)

2010 Activities: The TEP planned and convened the workshop and held a series of follow-up conference calls. The draft papers written as part of the planning process will be further developed based on the content of the workshop and submitted as a journal supplement. Publication can be expected in late 2011 or early 2012.

Preliminary Impact and Findings: Findings will be disseminated when the journal supplement is published.

Strategic Goal: Develop and disseminate health IT evidence and evidence-based tools to improve health care decisionmaking through the use of integrated data and knowledge management.

Business Goal: Synthesis and Dissemination