Home > Specialty Programs > In-Home Mental Health Program > Program Profile
Program Profile:
In-Home Mental Health Program
It is becoming increasingly understood and appreciated just how much healing and comfort extend beyond the physical. There is a decided mental well-being component as well, recognized by VNSW with the formation six years ago of its program of psychiatric healthcare – in the patient’s home, for maximized comfort and effect. Under this unique program, VNSW registered nurses with advanced psychiatric training conduct home visits to develop a plan to treat mental health issues in conjunction with medical/surgical needs.
This highly-successful program – with a proven track record – serves adults, the elderly, children and adolescents; it meets the total health care requirements of individuals utilizing a case management approach led by a psychiatric nurse specialist. Adjunct services complementing the mental health component include home health aides, medical/surgical nurses, social workers and relevant rehabilitation therapies.
Over the past year,” says Carol L. Weber, VNSW President & CEO, “we’ve been seeing a significant increase in referrals, a lot more elderly patients. They’re being seen with diagnoses of depression and anxiety related to the changes they’re going through, either because of a new health diagnosis, a change in their ability to care for themselves or a spouse in the home. The need for quality home-based mental healthcare services is ever-more compelling.”
These services fall generally into 2 categories, long-term for chronic patients and short-term, in the area of 2 to 3 months, for acutely ill patients. The decision is based on a particular patient’s diagnosis and history. According to Carol, “Long-term patients tend to have a history of non-compliance with their medications and need hands-on management to make sure they take their medications, follow up with their appointments and go to their programs. Acute patients tend to be older. They may or may or may not have had psychiatric diagnoses in the past, and generally are new to mental heath treatment in the community – psychiatrists, for example – or are on new or changed medications. We can see them for a shorter period of time, ensuring that their medications are taken, that they’re effective, that they’re changed if needed, that side effects are identified early, and that the patients keep their appointments. Our nurses may additionally help these patients find a practitioner or other resources in the community.”
The mental health team is comprised at any given time of about 15 nurses, full and part time, covering all of Westchester County. As the team receives referrals from other professional caregivers – those seeing the patient for medical-surgical diagnoses, from the community, from programs, from physicians, etc. – a nurse from the team is assigned to do an evaluation, and a plan of care is developed.
On a typical day, the team’s leader will review the referrals, assign the nurses, problem-solve with the nurses regarding the patients they’re currently seeing, help them develop and manage the care plan, supervise them and go out with them into patients’ homes. “Because they’re dealing with such a senior population,” says Carol, “one particular diagnosis that they’re seeing more and more is dementia. For Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, it is urgent that we at VNSW keep up with the state of the art in medications, and continuing education of our nurses and staff. Looking for opportunities to access this training is becoming an increasing part of the team’s routine.”
Listening to the team’s leader, you clearly hear the deep concern about the growing elderly population, the need to keep evolving strategies to assist them in staying at home, and identifying resources in the community to help achieve that goal. You also hear a heartwarming appreciation of her staff: “Although it’s largely true of nurses in general, the nurses on this mental health team are unsung heroes. What they do for the patients – all the things they do to enable them to remain at home – is absolutely incredible!”.
Back to Mental Health Home Care Program Description
E-mail for more info, or call (914) 682-1480, ext. 648
