Job Abstract

The Medical Director of Mental Health is a psychiatrist who oversees mental health services in the Medical Network and provides support related to the mental health needs of patients cared for across the Medical Network.

The Medical Director oversees the full spectrum of the Collaborative Care model that currently exists to support primary care physicians and their management of patients with mild to moderate depression and anxiety. This includes programmatic oversight and development, supervision of the core team that provides care to support this model, frequent interactions with and support of primary care physicians who refer patients to collaborative care, and development of alternative pathways for mental health care that cannot be managed by this program.  For reference, the collaborative care model consists of an embedded “core team” of Mental Health (MH) professionals (generally LCSWs) within our transformed primary care practices who provide evidence-based therapy to patients receiving mental health care under their primary care physicians. Principles guiding the model include: 1) a patient-centered team approach; 2) population-based methodology; 3) measurement-based management; 4) evidence-based evaluation and treatment; and 5) accountable care.

The MH Medical Director, together with the collaborative care team, provides appropriate education and consultation to primary care health providers and staff, including:

• Triage, evaluation and consultation
• Short-term therapies
• Medication management
• Mental health services in support of specific Medical Network programs
• Coordination of care between and among CSMN physicians and the external Mental Health referral network

The MH Medical Director also oversees and advises on other mental health needs of the Network, including developing and implementing care pathways that ensure appropriate level of care, supporting transitions of care and care coordination for patients with mental health needs, interfacing with specialists, providing guidance and supervision to social work services in the Medical Network, and collaborating with Network Contracting to ensure clear pathways and network adequacy for referral to outside mental health resources.

The MH Medical Director reports directly to the Chief Medical Officer, Cedars-Sinai Medical Network, and works closely with the other Medical Directors of the CSMN, CSMN primary care physician leadership, CSMN specialist physician leadership, and executive leadership within the CSMN, including but not limited to Quality, Population Health, Clinical Transformation, Network Management, Clinical Operations and Strategic Integration. 

POSITION RESPONSIBILITIES:

The MH Medical Director provides professional oversight to a multidisciplinary team that is focused on the care and coordination of patients with mental health disorders. The Medical Director actively supports CSMN physicians by working collaboratively with physician leadership to develop and execute a strategic, efficient, and outcomes-focused vision to meet the mental health needs of our patients and physicians. In addition to working closely with primary care physicians, the MH Medical Director is also responsible for liaising with the external referral MH network to ensure coordination of care for both mental health and medical/surgical services. The MH Medical Director collaborates with other CSMN providers of Population Health services, the Medical Director of Pain Management, and Population Health leadership, including Pharmacy Services, Ambulatory Care Management & ISP, Contracting, and Quality. The MH Medical Director provides direct supervision to licensed clinical social workers participating in the collaborative care model and any other mental health staff including psychologists and cooperates directly with the social work management team in CSMN to develop care pathways, provide education, and collaborate around challenging patient care issues. 

Primary Responsibilities

• Provides leadership of the Mental Health Management team and sets strategic direction, oversight of day-to-day operations, and staff supervision.
• Leads the development and implementation of a collaborative care model for patients with chronic medical conditions and MH disorders.
• Provides regularly scheduled caseload reviews to behavioral health specialists. Caseload reviews focus primarily on patients who are new to the caseload or who are not improving as expected under their current treatment plan.
• Works with behavioral health specialists to oversee the status and population health of their assigned patient caseload. The psychiatric consultant uses a registry to track all assigned patients and prioritize patients for case review and treatment adjustment.
• Recommends any treatment adjustments through the case review process or in ad hoc consultations, including medication recommendations and other interventions, after consulting with behavioral health specialists or other team members.
• Consults broadly on MH programs, issues, or challenges across the Medical Network, including advising on treatment for patients who may need more intensive or more specialized mental health care. Supports treatment in the medical setting until patients can be engaged in specialized care as appropriate.
• Is available to provide ad hoc telephone outreach to medical providers for very complex patients or challenging patient situations. Responds to telephone calls from medical providers and behavioral health specialists.  Participates as a provider for e-consultation.
• Supervises the Assistant Medical Director for Mental Health
• Develops and provides in-service training and educational programs for primary care and specialty providers and staff regarding recognition and management of behavioral health conditions in primary care.
• Supports ISP/ACM Social Work staff via education and advocacy, position development, case debriefs as needed, and facilitating interaction with the Collaborative Care Model and its team.
• Directs and attends case conferences, clinical rounds, and other types of meetings which address patient management and care coordination for patients with mental health conditions.
• Assists with the supervision and teaching of medical students, residents, fellows, social workers, case managers, pharmacists, nurse practitioners, nurses, and other clinical team members, as indicated.
• Interfaces and collaborates with other Population Health service providers and program leads to achieve integration and coordination of care for patients with MH disorders.
• Cultivates/maintains relationships with third-party MH providers to provide referral options for more complex MH services, including maintaining the network of providers for the CSMN Medicare Advantage plan(s).
• Assists Contracting with identification, engagement, and vetting of any community MH provider as needed.
• Supports and advises Utilization Management, CS 360, and population health teams as needed, including reviewing complex cases, high utilizers and deciding authorizations for CSMN-administered plans to use out of network MH resources and advising on .
• Serves as Medical Director of the Pharmacy Benzodiazepine Taper Program, including direct support of the clinical pharmacists in patient care and liaising with referring providers.
• Leads the Controlled Substances Steering Committee, including any work related to goals and projects.
• Convenes regular MH steering committee meetings for Population Health leadership and staff to help inform the operations and future of MH services.
• Demonstrates a commitment to value-based medicine by using evidence based clinical guidelines, ensuring that care is delivered in the most appropriate setting, collaborating with a multi-disciplinary care team, and adopting a practice philosophy that emphasizes clinical excellence and efficiency.  Ability to quickly synthesize medical and psychiatric data and formulate effective and evidence-based clinical recommendations.

REQUIREMENTS:

1. Medical degree from an accredited medical school
2. Fellowship training and Board Certification (or eligibility) in Psychiatry, with training in a relevant sub-specialty preferred
3. Unrestricted California license as Physician
4. DEA triplicate prescription license
5. Experience working in a collaborative care mental health model in ambulatory care or as a provider in a primary-care-based mental health model strongly preferred
6. Experience working in consultative role to PCPs including knowledge of the scientific evidence underpinning treatment recommendations
7. Must have experience in supervising other health care professionals and serve as a positive role model for the profession and other staff, consistently fostering a solution-oriented approach.
8. Demonstrated commitment to the concept of working on an interdisciplinary team
9. Computer competency comprised of a working knowledge of Windows and/or a comparable operating system and electronic medical record systems that sufficiently provides for access to and appropriate sharing of patient and other business information
10. Knowledge of population health practices and tools and managed care principles preferred
11. Demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively in a team setting. Excellent communication skills and positive, flexible, and solution-focused attitude.