Western Highlands Network
Friday E-Mail Newsletter
Number 85
2/2/2007
The Friday E-Mail is a weekly update for providers by the Services Management Department of Western Highlands Network. Please distribute to all your staff.
Western Highlands Network Announces Best Practice Guidelines for Consumer Follow-up and an Additional Training Opportunity
As part of its mission to promote the delivery of Best Practices, WHN has developed the following guidelines for consumer follow-up.
Purpose: To insure that consumers referred to providers
in the Western Highlands
Network are provided services needed to attain
treatment outcomes,
maintain safety for the consumer and the community,
and to promote the
delivery of Evidence Based Practices.
Policy: Western Highlands Network (WHN) is mandated to assure that consumers receive:
1.Clinically appropriate services and follow-up efforts to insure safety for the consumer and the community.
2. Services that promote positive treatment outcomes.
3. Services based on Evidence Based Practices.
As such, reasonable efforts are to be made to ensure that consumers who do not keep their initial evaluation/diagnostic assessment appointments receive appropriate and timely follow-up. WHN will monitor the delivery of services with random event checks of consumer contact and retrospective reviews of consumer’s records to assure provider compliance and quality of care.
Procedure: Consumers who are referred from Access receive one of the four following designations:
1. Hospital Discharge
2. Emergent
3. Urgent
4. Routine
Minimum Follow-up requirements if a consumer misses an appointment for Evaluation/ Diagnostic Assessment:
Hospital Discharges: All Consumers discharged from inpatient care must be seen face to face within 5 working days of discharge. This applies to consumers placed on Out Patient Commitment (OPC) as well. Reasonable effort for follow-up is defined as documentation of at least one of the following within 1 week of the initial missed appointment:
(1) a visit with the consumer in his/her home or
(2) a rescheduled office appointment that the individual keeps or
(3) a phone conversation with the individual about the services being offered; the individual agrees to a specific date/time for his/her next appointment within 1 week of phone call.
(4) if the consumer declines an appointment and is not OPC, the clinician performs a current risk assessment and takes action, if indicated, based on this determination.
Emergent: Reasonable effort for this group is defined as one of the
following to occur immediately:
(1) a petition for involuntary commitment or
(2) a referral for Mobile Crisis Services or
(3) a visit with the consumer in his/her home or
(4) a phone conversation with the individual in which a comprehensive
safety assessment is completed, and appropriate action taken based on this
determination.
Urgent: Reasonable effort for follow-up for this group is defined as one of the following within 24 hours of the initial missed appointment:
(1) a visit with the consumer in his/her home or
(2) a rescheduled office appointment that the individual keeps or
(3) a phone conversation with the individual in which a comprehensive safety assessment is completed, and appropriate action taken based on this determination.
Routine: Reasonable effort for follow-up for this group is defined as one of
the following within 1 week of the initial missed appointment:
(1) a rescheduled office appointment that the individual keeps or
(2) a phone conversation with the individual which confirms the individual’s current safety status and discusses the services being offered or
(3) at least one attempt to contact the individual at his or her last known address.
For consumers on OPC, the WHN OPC follow-up procedure should be followed. See Communication Bulletin # 45.
WHN Announces Training Opportunity
WHN will offer training on National Provider Identification (NPI) on Tuesday, February 20, 2007. This training will be held at Pack Memorial Library in downtown Asheville and will run from 1-3 pm. To RSVP, please contact Melissa Faulkner at faul0852@westernhighlands.org.
Charlie Schoenheit
Director of Services Management
Western Highlands Network
356 Biltmore Avenue
Asheville, NC 28801
Telephone: (828)258-3511 x2219
FAX: (828) 225-2779
E-Mail: Charlie@westernhighlands.org
Website: westernhighlands.org
