Among the many impacts of the global pandemic, one of the most significant is the accelerated need for mental and behavioral health services.

<p>
  Among the many impacts of the global pandemic, one of the most significant is
  the accelerated need for mental and behavioral health services. As a growing
  number of people suffered from higher levels of stress, anxiety, and
  depression from a range of factors associated with the fight against COVID-19,
  it only exacerbated the pre-existing shortage of behavioral health
  professionals – namely psychiatrists and mental health nurse practitioners
  (MHNPs).
</p>

<p>
  As healthcare organizations, facilities, and practices continue to rebuild
  financially and operationally post-pandemic, behavioral health represents one
  area that not only requires more staffing to meet patient demand, but an
  additional revenue stream. To meet both these objectives, many are
  incorporating new recruiting and staffing strategies, including the use of
  MHNPs to shore up gaps and locum tenens to cost-effectively secure needed
  behavioral health talent either temporarily or as a bridge to ensure
  continuity of care while using a search firm to find a permanent professional.
</p>

<h2>A Growing Mental Health Crisis.</h2>

<p>
  To put the dire need for mental and behavioral health services into context,
  consider that last fall a third of psychologists said they are seeing more
  patients since the start of the pandemic and of those who treat anxiety
  disorders, nearly three-quarters reported an increase in demand for treatment,
  according to the American Psychological Association.
</p>

<p>
  Overall, the supply and demand issue becomes even more pronounced when you
  consider that:
</p>

<ul>
  <li>
    20% of all Americans have mental health or substance abuse conditions,
    according to a 2017 report by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
  </li>
  <li>
    40% of patients seen by primary care physicians have active psychiatric
    problems, according to the Steinberg Institute.
  </li>

  <li>
    There has been a 42% increase in patients going to emergency departments for
    psychiatric services, according to a three-year study by the National
    Council for Behavioral Health.
  </li>
</ul>

<p>
  The global pandemic has also increased the demand for behavioral health
  services via telehealth, with a
  <a
    href="https://www.cigna.com/static/www-cigna-com/docs/about-us/newsroom/innovation/cigna-covid-trends-factsheet-virtual-and-behavioral-health.pdf"
    target="_blank"
    >27% increase</a
  >
  in behavioral health outpatient care compared to pre-pandemic levels. As a
  result, 44% of human resource decision-makers and 27% of health plan leaders
  said that increased
  <a
    href="https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/covid-19-ratcheting-demand-virtual-behavioral-healthcare-cigna-finds"
    target="_blank"
    >access to mental health services</a
  >
  will become a long-term solution for their organization. Some 57% of health
  plan leaders said they had seen the value of mental health services increase
  more than for most other services and benefits as a result of the coronavirus.
</p>

<p>The problem? Enough behavioral health professionals to fill that demand.</p>

<h2>Critical Shortage of Mental Health Providers.</h2>

<p>
  There was already an urgent need for more mental health providers before the
  pandemic, and the COVID-19 crisis has only underscored the importance of
  adequately supporting mental health services. Yet, a significant portion of
  those in need of treatment aren&rsquo;t receiving it, due in large part to a
  lack of provider supply.
</p>

<p>
  There are 45,580 psychiatrists in the U.S., which translates to roughly nine
  psychiatrists per 100,000 Americans, says the Association of American Medical
  Colleges (AAMC). Even more alarming:
</p>

<ul>
  <li>
    According to the Steinberg Institute, two-thirds of all primary care
    providers in the U.S. say they have trouble finding mental health
    specialists to refer patients to.
  </li>
  <li>
    In 2019, only 44.8% of people with any mental illness report reported
    receiving treatment, according to the National Institutes of Mental Health.
  </li>
  <li>
    By 2025, demand may
    <a
      href="https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/03/Psychiatric-Shortage_National-Council-.pdf"
      target="_blank"
      >outstrip supply</a
    >
    by 6,090 to 15,600 psychiatrists.
  </li>
</ul>

<p>
  The situation is even more critical in rural areas. Data released in April
  2021 by the Health Resources &amp; Services Administration (HRSA) finds
  shortage of 6,471 mental health providers impacting 124 million people living
  in the regions designated by the HRSA as &ldquo;Health Professional Shortage
  Areas.&rdquo;
</p>

<p>
  In addition, of the more than 3,000 counties in the U.S., 60% have no
  psychiatrists at all. Zero. There is a large disparity in the availability of
  mental health by geographic locations. For example, there are about 612
  psychiatrists per 100,000 people in parts of New York State &ndash; a 1-to-163
  ratio &ndash; yet there are fewer than one per 100,000 in Idaho. There are
  more than 6,000 areas in the U.S. in which the population-to-provider ratio
  for mental healthcare is at least 30,000-to-1, says the HRSA.
</p>

<h2>Telehealth and Telepsychiatry Poised to Help Meet Demand.</h2>

<p>
  If one silver lining came out of the pandemic, particularly for mental health
  patients, it is the emergence and adoption of remote therapy and treatment
  through telehealth, both in urban and rural areas. Almost immediately after
  the start of the pandemic, providers and patients were adapting to technology
  that allows for treatment for those in both densely and sparsely populated
  areas in the country.
</p>

<p>
  With more than 60% of behavioral health patients now using virtual services,
  97% of the people who accessed such services from March to May 2020
  <a
    href="https://www.healthcarefinancenews.com/news/covid-19-ratcheting-demand-virtual-behavioral-healthcare-cigna-finds"
    target="_blank"
    >didn&rsquo;t have a behavioral telehealth claim</a
  >
  prior to then. In fact, primary care and behavioral services were the largest
  specialties utilized virtually in 2020 &ndash; nearly two-thirds of behavioral
  care was performed virtually.
</p>

<p>
  Many experts are predicting that the increased use of telepsychiatry will last
  well into the future, given it&rsquo;s early and swift adoption as well as the
  benefits of a virtual platform eliminating many traditional barriers such as,
  stigma that may hinder patients from following up with treatment.
</p>

<h2>Alternative Staffing Solutions to the Provider Shortage.</h2>

<p>
  Roles such as MHNPs are poised to help shore up the supply-and-demand gap. In
  fact, psychiatry-mental health is one of the
  <a
    href="https://www.apna.org/files/public/Resources/Expanding_Mental_Health_Care_Services_in_America-The_Pivotal_Role_of_Psychiatric-Mental_Health_Nurses_04_19.pdf"
    target="_blank"
    >fastest growing</a
  >, non-physician specialties in the healthcare field. While MHNPs and
  psychiatrists are not interchangeable, using some of these providers to
  deliver access to care and to fill in gaps is an increasingly attractive and
  viable solution.
</p>

<p>
  For example, MHNPs can care for the needs of many patients, despite the
  varying state-by-state scope of practice laws. In states with independent
  practice authority for nurse practitioners, such as New Hampshire, MHNPs are
  able to provide significantly more mental health services when compared with
  NPs who practice in states without
  <a
    href="https://mcnp.enpnetwork.com/nurse-practitioner-news/212292-massachusetts-nps-granted-full-practice-authority-"
    target="_blank"
    >independent practice authority for NPs.</a
  >
</p>

<p>
  Another solution to the shortage of mental health providers is through the use
  of locum tenens. These qualified providers can be called into service to
  expand access to care, as many were during the height of the pandemic. Locum
  tenens psychiatrists and MHNPs are often willing to work in rural or other
  underserved areas where there is a high demand for their services.
</p>

<p>
  As a trusted staffing partner to leading healthcare organizations across the
  U.S., Cross Country Locums continually monitors and analyzes key market
  dynamics of the mental health sector. To learn more about current labor trends
  for psychiatrists and MHNPs,
  <a href="http://marketing.crosscountry.com/sites/ccl/lp-psych" target="_blank"
    >download our latest Market Snapshot</a
  >.
</p>


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