Mental and Substance Use Disorder Practitioner Data

10/4/2019

The GW Fitzhugh Mullan Institute for Health Workforce Equity was awarded a 3-year grant from SAMHSA to build a national database on the Mental and Substance Use Disorder (MH/SUD) workforce and provide analysis on the extent to which efforts are needed to expand the MH/SUD workforce. Clese Erikson will serve as the Principal Investigator on the project and Edward Salsberg will be the co-PI. This multi-year effort will use both traditional and novel data sources to build a comprehensive database that will allow SAMSHA to better understand the available supply and practice location of the behavioral health workforce and how this compares with need for behavioral health services at the state and local level. The Mullan Institute will partner with colleagues at SAMHSA, the Behavioral Health Workforce Center at the University of Michigan, behavioral health-related professional societies, and HealthLandscape to develop a mental health and substance use disorder workforce database on the following practitioners:

MH/SUD “prescribers”: physicians with a primary specialty listing of psychiatry, addiction psychiatry, child and adolescent psychiatry, addiction medicine; and psychiatric nurse practitioners/clinical nurse specialists;
PrimaryCare (PC) “prescribers”: this includes family physicians, internists, pediatricians, OB/GYNs, nurse practitioners, (NPs), and physician assistants(PAs) who provide MH/SUD treatment services;
“Counselors”: Professions that care for individuals with MH/SUD issues, including psychologists, licensed clinical social workers (LCSW), licensed professional counselors (LPC), and marriage and family therapists (MFT); and
“Paraprofessionals” includes peer specialists, community health workers (CHWs), rehabilitation specialists, and prevention specialists.

2 Comments

ARCHIVES

DEFYING THE SOFT BIGOTRY OF LOW EXPECTATIONS link

3/18/2021 01:14:25 am

We have nationally seen a steady increase for over a decade in the number of parents who have had to bury their children as a result of substance use disorders, we have also seen a steady withdrawal of support for those same individuals and families while they’re still fighting. In the public sector, we have seen agencies asked to treat an ever-growing number of individuals in need with the same or less resources year after year. In the private sector, we have seen abysmally short and woefully insufficient treatment episodes provided and even the draconian implementation by some insurance providers of “fail first” policies, which should more accurately be titled “please die quickly so we don’t have to fulfill our obligation to your parents” policies.

Davis Teresa link

3/19/2025 02:24:41 am

This project is such a crucial step toward addressing the growing need for mental health and substance use disorder services. It's exciting to see the partnership between the Mullan Institute, SAMHSA, and other key organizations, which will hopefully provide a clearer understanding of workforce gaps and service shortages across the country. The comprehensive database being built will not only highlight existing resources but will also guide future initiatives to better equip our communities with the mental health support they need.