Collaborative Care Model
The Collaborative Care Model (CoCM) is an evidence-based practice to bring physical and mental health care and treatment together within the same primary care provider’s (PCP) office. Under CoCM, a PCP leads a team of professionals, including a consulting psychiatrist and a case manager, all working together to coordinate care and ensure access to the best treatment available for a patient’s needs. CoCM is particularly adept at detecting mental health issues like depression because it incorporates another proven approach: measurement-based care (MBC). Every routine check-up can include screening for emotional ailments like depression, anxiety, and substance use, just like screening for common physical markers like blood sugar and cholesterol level. When a need is detected, the PCP can immediately consult with the mental health specialist and quickly determine a treatment plan the patient can begin that day.
Collaborative Care Evidence Base
CoCM is extensively evidence-based, with its efficacy being demonstrated by more than 90 randomized controlled trials and several meta-analyses across diverse diagnoses (e.g., depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder), patient populations (e.g., older adults, patients with chronic medical problems) and treatment settings (e.g., Federally Qualified Healthcare Centers, the Veterans Health Administration). CoCM has been shown to reduce racial and ethnic treatment outcome disparities and is effective when implemented in rural or underserved urban treatment settings. Finally, CoCM has designated billing codes that are reimbursed by Medicare, most commercial payers, and a growing number of state Medicaid plans, leading the model to be financially sustainable. Below are several research, review, and practice-based articles that demonstrate the effectiveness of Collaborative Care in research and real-world settings.
Technical Assistance Tools for Subpopulations
Technical assistance tools were developed by the Meadows Institute, in collaboration with select partners, to meaningfully support care teams seeking to implement high-fidelity Collaborative Care (CoCM).
Delivering Quality Mental Health Care in Women’s Healthcare Settings
A policy brief providing an overview of CoCM in Women’s health care settings.
Women’s Health Clinical Workflow
Clinical workflow details to support the implementation of CoCM in Women’s healthcare settings. This document illustrates how a patient is referred to the CoCM team.
Women’s Health Clinical Team
An overview of the CoCM clinical team structure, explaining each team member’s distinct role in CoCM, with key clinical, administrative, and billing responsibilities.
Women’s Health Transformation Team
An overview of the extended multidisciplinary transformation team that works together at every level of the organization to plan, build, and maintain CoCM in Women’s health care settings.
Delivering Quality Mental Health Care in the Primary Care Setting
A policy brief providing an overview of CoCM while also highlighting evidence supporting the model and financing strategies.
Adult Clinical Workflow
Clinical workflow details to support the implementation of CoCM for adults. This document illustrates how an adult patient is referred to the CoCM team.
Adult Clinical Team
An overview of the CoCM clinical team structure, explaining each team member’s distinct role in CoCM, with key clinical, administrative, and billing responsibilities.
Adult Transformation Team
An overview of the extended multidisciplinary transformation team that works together at every level of the organization to plan, build, and maintain CoCM.
Delivering Quality Mental Health Care in Pediatric healthcare settings.
A policy brief providing an overview of CoCM in pediatric health care settings.
Pediatric Clinical Workflow
Clinical workflow details to support the implementation of CoCM for children and youth. This document illustrates how a pediatric patient is referred to the CoCM team.
Pediatric Clinical Team
An overview of the CoCM clinical team structure, explaining each team member’s distinct role in CoCM, with key clinical, administrative, and billing responsibilities.
Pediatric Transformation Team
An overview of the extended multidisciplinary transformation team that works together at every level of the organization to plan, build, and maintain CoCM in pediatric health care settings.
Patient Registry
Guidance on establishing and using a CoCM registry, including key functions and a decision matrix to help health systems and clinical teams decide which type of registry to use.
Billing Basics
An overview of CoCM billing codes, including time thresholds, patient cost-sharing, and claim submission requirements.
Evidence Base for Collaborative Care
- Archer, J., Bower, P., Gilbody, S., Lovell, K., Richards, D., Gask, L., ... & Coventry, P. (2012). Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. Collaborative care for depression and anxiety problems, 10(10.1002), 14651858.
- Hu, J., Wu, T., Damodaran, S., Tabb, K. M., Bauer, A., & Huang, H. (2020). The effectiveness of collaborative care on depression outcomes for racial/ethnic minority populations in primary care: a systematic review. Psychosomatics, 61(6), 632-644.
- Unützer, J., Carlo, A. C., Arao, R., Vredevoogd, M., Fortney, J., Powers, D., & Russo, J. (2020). Variation In The Effectiveness Of Collaborative Care For Depression: Does It Matter Where You Get Your Care? Study examines variations in outcomes for patients who received treatment for depression in primary care settings using the collaborative care model. Health Affairs, 39(11), 1943-1950.
Learn More
For information on Collaborative Care technical assistance and implementation, contact:
CoCM Technical Assistance (TA) Team