Physical Health Monitoring for Diverse Populations with Serious Mental Illness: Opportunity to Fill Gaps in Care-View Presentation

Video Transcription

Video Summary

The SMI Advisor webinar emphasized the importance of physical health monitoring for individuals with serious mental illness (SMI), focusing on underserved and minority populations. Dr. Christina Mangurian, a psychiatrist, shared her extensive research on integrating health screenings into mental health care. Dr. Mangurian’s studies reveal that people with SMI often have lower rates of diabetes, HIV, hepatitis C, and cancer screenings compared to the general population, despite having higher prevalence rates for these conditions. Young adults and minority groups are particularly underscreened. Her work, conducted in both public settings in California and integrated systems like Kaiser Permanente, highlights the need for systemic changes to improve health outcomes. Strategies suggested include onsite phlebotomy, mobile health services, and embedding primary care within mental health settings to bridge gaps. Dr. Mangurian also stresses the importance of leveraging population health approaches and developing strong public-academic partnerships. Clinicians are encouraged to engage in preventive care by initiating treatment for metabolic issues and addressing nicotine dependence, ensuring comprehensive care for this vulnerable group. The webinar provided tools and resources available through SMI Advisor for improving screening and treatment practices in clinical settings.

Keywords

SMI Advisor

physical health monitoring

serious mental illness

underserved populations

health screenings

systemic changes

preventive care

public-academic partnerships

integrated health systems