Integrating Primary Care and Behavioral Health: The Rote of the Psychiatrist in the Collaborative Care Model

Each team member has a clear role on the collaborative care team, and the psychiatrist needs to be available to provide consultation and guidance in a readily accessible manner. Indirect consultation with primary care providers and behavioral health providers is a crucial part of the system of care, and key elements such as developing mutual respect and trust must be adhered to. Psychiatrists can prepare for working in integrated care environments by establishing collegial relationships with primary care providers and improving their general medical knowledge and the treatment of common mental health presentations in the primary care setting. Cultural differences between primary care and mental health care need to be well understood, and active monitoring of the team dynamics is an important role psychiatrists can play. Integrating primary care and mental health provides new opportunities and challenges for psychiatrists. Understanding the fundamentals of the process allows a sophisticated application of psychiatric skills, already in short supply, to be leveraged across larger populations of patients. To meet this challenge, psychiatristswillneedtobe competent in their roles and be prepared to provide leadership as teams navigate these new relationships.