FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: May 06 2021
Contact: Jon Ebelt, Public Information Officer, DPHHS, (406) 444-0936, (406) 461-3757, jebelt@mt.gov
Eric Arzubi, MD and CEO of Frontier Psychiatry, eric@frontier.care, (406) 200-8471
Psychiatric Consultation Line for Clinicians to Expand Patient Care
Line first piloted, now available statewide
MONTANA - The Department and Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) and Frontier Psychiatry are partnering to launch a free, statewide psychiatric consultation line for clinicians caring for the mental health of patients who are pregnant or in the postpartum period.
The new service is called PRISM for Moms. PRISM stands for Psychiatric Referrals, Intervention, and Support in Montana and is the first consultation line dedicated to supporting the unique mental health needs of Montanans in the perinatal period.
“This is an identified need that will strengthen efforts to support pregnant and post-partum women by connecting providers to specialists for timely access to consultation services,” DPHHS Director Adam Meier said.
To request a consultation, clinicians are encouraged to call 1-833-83-PRISM (1-833-837-7476) or submit a HIPAA-compliant online e-consult form at prismconsult.org.
The new service has been piloted over the past three months and is now being launched statewide to all interested providers. Those included in the pilot phase were FamilyBorn Maternity and Women’s Health at Kalispell Regional Healthcare; SCL Health – Billings Midwifery & Women’s Health; SCL Health Medical Group in Butte; SCL Health - Butte OB-GYN; and Holy Rosary OB-GYN in Miles City.
Providers involved in the pilot project express how the new opportunity will make a difference.
“PRISM for Moms provides those struggling through perinatal mood disorders prompt access to quality mental health care,” said Christie Weseman, Certified Nurse Midwife (CNM) from FamilyBorn Maternity and Women’s Health in Kalispell. “Perinatal mood disorders are prevalent and are a challenge for so many. Sometimes these challenges are such that we need reliable access to consulting providers with specific skills in this area. PRISM provides this access and our patients have benefited.”
“I am so excited about PRISM,” said Nurse Practitioner Chantielle Blackwell of SLC Health Medical Group-Billings Midwifery & Women’s Health. “In the mental health field and perinatal especially, so many of our patients are struggling. This has only increased significantly during COVID. The availability to call someone on the phone and have a full psych evaluation with the patients’ full history is game-changer.”
Montana faces severe shortages in mental and behavioral health, with 55 of Montana’s 56 counties designated as Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas. Women needing treatment for prenatal and postpartum depression and substance use disorder during pregnancy may not be able to receive the care they need, particularly in Montana’s very rural counties.
According to DPHHS, pregnant women and new mothers have an extremely high burden of mental illness in Montana. While 10.5% of women at the national level report depression before pregnancy, this number climbs to 19.6% for Montana women.
The purpose of the new line is for prescribing providers across Montana that need psychiatric teleconsultation services for pregnant and postpartum patients. This service is available but not limited to midwives, obstetric providers, primary care providers, pediatricians, psychiatric providers, psychologists, nurses, medical assistants, care coordinators, and social workers.
The line is staffed by the clinical team of Billings-based Frontier Psychiatry, in partnership with DPHHS and Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies – The Montana Coalition.
This service is funded through part of a five-year federal grant awarded to DPHHS through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). The cost to support the line is $490,000 total through 2023.
“This new service will provide an opportunity to better serve an especially vulnerable patient population: Montanans who are experiencing the biological and psychological stress of pregnancy and the postpartum period,” said Eric Arzubi, MD, CEO of Frontier Psychiatry. “This service is yet another important tool that helps disseminate key clinical know-how statewide.”
Calls will be answered 24/7 by a support specialist who will collect information to prepare a clinical staff member from Frontier Psychiatry to call back and provide case-based consultation. Staff will return weekday requests between 4 pm and 5 pm on the same day. Requests received after 4 pm on weekdays or over the weekend will be addressed the next business day.
In June, Frontier Psychiatry will also launch a Project ECHO clinic dedicated to topic and case-based telementoring of clinicians statewide in the assessment and management of psychiatric disorders in the perinatal period. The educational sessions and consultation services will be led by Dr. Ariela Frieder, a perinatal psychiatrist and medical director of PRISM for Moms.
For more information, please visit prismconsult.org or contact Eric Arzubi, MD at 406-200-8471 or eric@frontier.care