Shared Care and Usual Health Care for Mental and Comorbid Health Problems

The aim is to study the impact on patients and health care by an adaption of the Hamilton Family Health Team model of shared care between general practitioners (GPs), mental health services and other primary or specialized services. The study is done at six GP centers with 30 GPs in three boroughs in Oslo, Norway. At each GP center with shared care one clinical psychologist from a CMHC works two and a half day a week and a psychiatrist 1-2 hours a week. They are available for the GPs for discussions, and they give assessment and brief treatment as requested by the GPs. Other primary health and social care and other specialized mental health or substance addiction services are consulted according to needs of the patients. The study is a cluster randomized controlled study of GP patients and their health care in GP centers with shared care (experimental group) compared with usual health care in other GP centers (control group). In each of three boroughs one GP center is randomized to shared care for 18 months while another center continues with usual health care. Register data on patients and services are extracted for 12 months (T0) before implementation of shared care and for 12 months (T1) with shared care after 6 months implementation. The register data on patients and health care are extracted from the GP patient records, mental health and substance abuse services, and NAV (social/welfare services). The cohorts at T0 and T2 include all patients 16-65 years old seen by the GPs. Patient-reported mental health, functional impairment due to health problems, overall quality of life and satisfaction with health services are studied for a sub-sample of the register cohort at both T0 and T1. A qualitative sub-study of experiences with collaboration, the shared care model, implementation of the model, facilitators and barriers is done at the end of the 18 months period of shared care. The informants include patients, GPs and coworkers, and managers and professionals