Polk County Behavioral Health Study | Page 164

throughout the day ; most sites received multiple calls . The list of information gleaned during the calls includes those listed below .
• Basic customer service measures ( e . g ., number of rings before staff answered the phone , level of friendliness and helpfulness to the caller , level of professionalism in how staff assists the caller , and others ; and variations in these measures based on the caller ’ s insurance status ).
• Wait time for an appointment and initial access
• Insurance status impact on access to care
The results help identify service access gaps , improvement strategies , and service variations based on insurance status . The appendices contain a descriptive profile of organizations included in the Access Audit . Access Audit Results The access audit calls revealed several key barriers that may limit an individual ’ s ability to access behavioral health and substance use care when needed in the community . The purpose of the audit is to identify general access to care issues in the Polk County area – not to profile any particular site . The broad issues noted are used to help guide , validate , or improve service site-level practices that impact individual ’ s ability to receive care . The average wait time for an initial screening appointment is less than one week , yet counseling appointments are typically approximately two weeks at most sites . Appointments for medication management may require a wait time of more than three weeks .
Additionally , about half of phone calls were sent directly to voice mail . In those circumstances , patients must rely on the provider to a ) return their call in a timely manner and b ) call when the patient has the ability to answer the phone and freely hold a conversation about his or her health issues – which , for many , can be challenging . However , when engaged , live attendants were very empathetic and caring . In several cases , organizations were staffed by individuals who had previously received care for issues being addressed by their organization ; those individuals were particularly effective in engaging the caller Other key summary points include the following :
• Walk-ins were noted as being available by one organization to identify patients in crisis , and as a way to schedule follow up visits after intake .
• In cases where a conversation was conducted , new patients were typically asked to come in and pick up initial material ( or due to the pandemic , receive them via email or download information from a website ), then be seen at a later date .
• The initial wait time for services is one week or sooner for an initial screening but about two weeks for a counseling appointment after the screening . However , patients in crisis can often be seen within one week .
• The wait time for psychiatry services is two to four weeks – longer in some cases . Medication management needs are particularly acute for pediatric services .
• In conversation , people freely referred callers to other providers , even if outside their own organizations . However , in many cases , organizations were unable to identify a publicly available source , database , online search tool , or directory of area service providers .
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