Friday, Oct. 20
15:45 – 16:45 (1 hr)
Meeting Room: Parksville (3rd floor – North Tower)
Matthew Kelsey*, MHSc; Susan Abbey, MD, FRCP; Kathleen Sheehan, MD, DPhil, FRCPC; Matthew Kelsey, MHSc; Emma Scott, B.Sc (Hons)

CanMEDS Roles:

1. Health Advocate
2. Leader
3. Medical Expert

At the end of this session, participants will be able to: 1) Develop an awareness of the need for sustainable approaches for integrating mental health services for patients with physical illness; 2) Describe current and proposed funding sources for mental health services for patients with physical illness; and 3) Identify gaps in funding and the implementation of mental health services for patients with physical illness.

The synergistic relation between physical and mental health is well established. People with physical illnesses are more likely to experience comorbid mental health issues compared to the general population. (1) Concurrently, patients with chronic illness with comorbid mental health disorders typically require more costly care. (1) Despite this knowledge, a major barrier to providing integrated mental health services to patients with physical illness is a lack of sufficient, sustainable funding. (2) The following workshop will provide an overview of the funding and enablement of mental health services in the context of physical health.

The goal of the workshop is to highlight the need for a more comprehensive approach to funding-integrated physical and mental health services and encourage a dialogue to develop practical funding solutions.
• Dr. Kathleen Sheehan will briefly review the importance of integrated physical and mental health and broader aspects of Canadian health care systems to consider when funding and implementing mental health services for patients with physical illness.
• Ms. Emma Scott will root discussions in the Ontario, sharing perspectives on facilitators, barriers, and practical solutions for providing mental health services to patients with major physical illnesses.
• Mr. Matthew Kelsey will discuss philanthropic efforts and current sources of funding for mental health services for patients with medical illness.
• Acting as workshop moderator, Dr. Susan Abbey will share her knowledge on developing medical psychiatry programs, including funding and organizational considerations.

References:

1. Sporinova B, Manns B, Tonelli M, et al. Association of mental health disorders with health care utilization and costs among adults with chronic disease. JAMA Netw Open 2019;2(8):e199910.
2. Naylor C, Das P, Ross S, et al. Bringing together physical and mental health: a new frontier for integrated care. London (GB): The King’s Fund; 2016.