OCTOBER 30, 2015
CHR and Charter Oak Health Center Form Alliance to Improve Management of Behavioral Healthcare Services
HARTFORD, Conn. – Community Health Resources (CHR), the state’s most comprehensive behavioral healthcare agency, today announced a strategic alliance with Charter Oak Health Center, Inc., a full service federally qualified health center in Hartford, to coordinate outpatient mental health and addiction services for adults, families and children in the Hartford region.
Through the new agreement, effective November 1, CHR will manage and deliver all behavioral healthcare services at Charter Oak, offering a broad range of services for patients suffering from depression, anxiety disorders and more. Services will be embedded in Charter Oak’s Grand Street office as well as its satellites throughout Hartford. “We look forward to working with Charter Oak in this new endeavor. This agreement is one in a series of steps CHR is taking to integrate behavioral healthcare services with primary care and reflects our deep conviction that all patients should have easy access to a full complement of quality healthcare services,” said Heather Gates, President and CEO of CHR.
“We believe this collaboration will help provide additional resources to meet our community’s needs and improve the way we offer behavioral health services. Integrated care is an initiative Charter Oak has been moving toward and we are confident that with CHR’s presence and expertise, our patient’s overall health outcomes will improve,” said Charter Oak’s President and CEO Nichelle Mullins, Esq.
“Giving people access to a complete range of services, including behavioral healthcare, is important for all patients, especially those with serious mental illnesses such as depression, anxiety disorders, addictions and PTSD,” Gates said, noting that individuals with serious mental illnesses statistically do not receive adequate and ongoing medical care and have dramatically shorter life expectancies than the general population.
“We are looking for every opportunity to break down barriers and improve access to complete care for our clients,” Gates said. Within the last year, CHR also launched the state’s largest Behavioral Health Home to coordinate the healthcare needs of clients and started offering primary care services in its Manchester office. In addition, CHR is partnering with other primary care practices to provide behavioral health services.
The agreement with Charter Oak marks the opening of CHR’s first behavioral health clinic in a primary care practice in Hartford. It currently has an office on Asylum Avenue and will soon open a Spanish-speaking behavioral healthcare practice on Arbor Street. In all, CHR has more than 30 locations in eastern and central Connecticut, with large outpatient centers in Enfield and Manchester.
“The agreement with Charter Oak ties into CHR’s overarching goal to promote health and to increase access to complete care for patients. We’re also pleased to continue expanding our range of behavioral health services in the city of Hartford,” added CHR Board of Directors Chair Jason Jakubowski.
“Charter Oak’s mission is to promote healthier communities by providing quality, safe, patient-centered healthcare services to all patients regardless of their ability to pay. This new venture will help Charter Oak meet this goal,” stated Kendra Shakir, Board Chair from Charter Oak.
About Charter Oak Health Center Charter Oak is a federally-qualified, freestanding, Joint Commission-accredited, non-profit community health center based on Grand Street in Hartford. It has continuously provided community-based ambulatory primary health care in Hartford since 1978. Charter Oak has 10 licensed sites in Hartford, is the only community health center located in southern Hartford and provides vital services to more than 20,000 patients a year. It recently appointed Nichelle Mullins, Esq., as its President and CEO.
About CHR CHR helps adults, children and families find real hope for the challenges of real life through an array of community-based mental health, substance use, child welfare, supportive housing, foster care, and prevention and wellness programs. It is the most comprehensive behavioral healthcare agency in Connecticut, serving more than 20,000 individuals each year with locations throughout eastern and central Connecticut. Celebrating its 50th anniversary in 2016, CHR is accredited by The Joint Commission, licensed by the state of Connecticut and adheres to robust compliance and cultural competency standards. Learn more at https://www.chrhealth.org.