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Understand Your Data to Improve South University Answers Growing

the Patient Experience Demand for Clinical Mental Health

Counseling Professionals
BY DANIEL CASCIATO

Today, more than ever, health systems are working hard BY VANESSA ORR
to better improve the patient experience of care to be suc-
cessful and to retain patients. In order to create this great Every day, the need for mental health professionals
patient experience, you have to understand the data per- grows. With increases in gun violence, school shootings,
meating across the patient journey throughout your the opiate crisis, domestic violence, PTSD and more, it is
organization. imperative to have a well-trained workforce in place to
One way data is vital to many health systems is because help people deal with the issues affecting their wellness
you can use it to help track your patients across their and personal growth.
journey through your system. You will know at all times As a way to provide more accessible and effective behav-
where they are—and if they are receiving immediate care. ioral health services across the country, the Clinical
For example, if a patient was in one of your locations Murray Izenwasser Mental Health Department at South University offers a
and needed to see a specialist, the attending physician Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
could log onto an app, find out where the specialist is located and send a message Program, which is designed to provide graduates with the Tom Christiansen
directly to them. If the specialist was nearby they would receive a notification to skills necessary to effectively assess and treat patients. The
come to that particular exam room. Even if they weren’t nearby, they’d be able to set program, which has a special emphasis on school-based
an appointment for the patient immediately. counseling models and trauma and resiliency treatment approaches, works across all
Examples like this ultimately leads to better health outcomes and improved ages, from infant mental health to geriatric care.
patient satisfaction which culminates in more patients and increased revenue, notes “Our focus is on giving clinicians the skills to help people recover and work through
Murray Izenwasser, VP Consulting and Healthcare Practice Lead for OZ, a leading issues including PTSD, childhood trauma, or being the victim of crime or domestic
global consulting company whose services and solutions enhance Customer violence,” explained Tom Christiansen, interim program director, Clinical Mental
Experience through digital innovation. Health Department, South University. “They may also work with patients on sub-
"Regardless of where your patient is physically and where the staff is physically, stance abuse issues, or on promoting physical health through lifestyle changes such as
you can start being able to provide better patient care,” he adds. “You’re creating a reducing risk factors for cardiac issues or diabetes.”
much better patient experience and a much better employee experience as well. As the need for these services grows, so does the necessity for more experts in the
With this data, you also have a better opportunity to have information from which field. Last year, for example, the Florida Legislature allocated funding for school-based
the administration can use to make better decisions moving forward.” behavioral health services for every school district in the state with the goal of having
No matter the variables, OZ works with healthcare systems to help make patient at least one mental health professional for every school.
care more personalized, simple, and efficient. The company helps hospitals squeeze “Florida is investing in mental health counselors; in Palm Beach County alone,
optimal value out of their budgets to drive patient experiences, so they can continue more than 100 of these employees were hired in the last year,” said Christiansen.
delivering the best patient experiences. Even before this hiring surge, South University’s master’s program, which is accred-
“First, you need to spend a little bit of time understanding what data is in all these ited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs
different systems, where the duplications are, what data is located where, etc.,” says (CACREP), boasted a very high placement rate for graduating professionals. “Last
Izenwasser. "Learn about the quality of data across all of your different systems and year, 90 percent of our students had job offers upon graduation,” said Christiansen.
then create a mechanism to bring this information together.” One of the fastest growing areas in healthcare, Christiansen added that the U.S.
OZ can help organizations integrate all of its current data and assemble it into one Department of Labor Statistics estimates a 28 percent growth in job opportunities for
centralized location. The company’s focus for the past 23 years has been a core of mental health counselors in the state of Florida in the next five years.
integrating data and the bulk of the work that it has done has been in healthcare over South University offers the Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health Counseling
those years. Program at six campuses across the country, including at West Palm Beach, where it
At every stage along the patient journey, OZ can help hospitals create something has been in place for the past 14 years. Approximately 40 students each year take part
that truly integrates to the business of doing healthcare while creating a great expe- in the two-year program, with cohorts ranging from six to 12 students. Classes are
rience for that patient, physician or employee. Its longevity in the field has been one offered on evenings and weekends so that students can still work while earning their
of the keys to the company’s success. degrees.
As a result, Izenwasser says that they understand how to do that kind of integra- “Right now, all of the work is ‘on-ground,’ but we are exploring the idea of providing
tion to most of the different internal and external systems as well as all of the gate- some blended curriculum items in the future,” said Christiansen.
ways that healthcare staff navigate while serving and working with patients, such as The program, which is focused on the latest evidence-based treatment approaches,
the approval gateways or pharmacy gateways. is both individualized and hands-on. Second-year students are also required to partic-
“It's the understanding of how to do that integration where we can best help any ipate in an internship, spending 800 hours working in the field.
organization,” he says. “We take students’ professional interests into account, whether that’s working with
Ultimately, what makes a great patient experience is where the processes, proce- children, or in recovery or forensics,” said Christiansen. “We also have community
dures and administration of modern day healthcare do not get in the way of getting ties with numerous providers in the area who take part in our internship programs.
the patient back to the status quo of their lives, adds Izenwasser. This gives students a leg up when they graduate, increasing the probability of job
offers.”
For more information, visit www.followoz.com.
To learn more about South University’s Master of Arts in Clinical Mental Health
Counseling Program, visit www.SouthUniversity.edu or call (561) 273-6500.

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