Background: In school year (SY) 2014-2015, 128 schools in 24 districts and 14 states were randomly assigned to receive either onsite or online support to implement a school-based wellness program. The objective of this study was to assess the cost-effectiveness (CE) of the 2 models of implementation support: onsite and online. Methods: We adapted…

Three evaluation methodologies used in studies of volunteer utilization are reviewed: model-program comparison, benefit-cost analysis; and qualitative program review. The importance of utilizing a comprehensive evaluation incorporating all three methodologies is discussed using an ongoing community mental health center volunteer program as an…

Discusses "health psychology," a movement to integrate health and mental health services, using vehicles from traditional mental health services. Describes examples of cost-effective mental health services in health care delivery and offers potential models for integration. (Author/ABB)

An overview of the theoretical concepts of capitation, a method of paying a provider a fixed price per person served, is presented in conjunction with practical lessons from the literature documenting capitation efforts in public mental health. An analytic framework identifies five major planning concerns in capitation. (SLD)

In this component of the evaluation, the Circles of Care grantees assessed the feasibility of their model systems of care. The goal of the Feasibility Assessment was to assure that each model system of care was well designed with careful consideration of project goals, community resources and readiness, cultural competence and measurable outcomes.

Operations research is defined as the application of scientific or quantitative methods to problems involving the operations of a system, which are directed toward obtaining optimal solutions. The goal, as applied to mental health systems, is the establishment of a "best" improvement path which can be implemented with minimum uncertainty. The…

Analytic labor force participation models which exclude information on worker health care lack explanatory power. If costs of disability can be separated through better information into costs reducible through delivery of health care, and costs more appropriately dealt with through labor market policies, the models will be improved. (KP)

Florida's District 12 Veterans Administration (VA) wanted to deliver medical case-management services to veterans not receiving home-based services due to the geographic restrictions of the VA's Hospital-Based Home Care Program. The Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services (HRS) desired to demonstrate the effectiveness of nurse…

This document describes the TEACH (Train the Elderly And their Caregivers at Home) project, a demonstration project developed by Florida's District 12 Veterans Administration and the Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services to reduce Medicaid nursing home expenditures by delaying or avoiding nursing home placement and to provide…

Starting Early Starting Smart (SESS) is a knowledge development initiative designed to: (1) create and test a new model for providing mental health and substance abuse prevention and treatment for young children (birth to 7 years) and their families; and (2) inform practitioners and policymakers of successful interventions and promising practices…

Women have a higher prevalence of depressive disorders compared to men. The current system of care for women with depressive disorders provides significant financial barriers for patients with lower incomes to access mental health services. Primary care systems are used extensively by women and have the potential to diagnose patients at early…