📍Chapel Hill, North Carolina

Strengthening the Behavioral Health Workforce Through Community-Based Partnerships

Challenge:

Integrated healthcare is a critical part of expanding healthcare to address the needs of the community. But how do you effectively teach new behavioral health clinicians to care for the range of needs and situations they will see in their careers?

Solution:

UNC-PrimeCare is an HRS Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training (BHWET)-funded program in the School of Social Work at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The program developed a student training model and fostered local partnerships to reduce workforce shortages and enhance the skills of current community providers. UNC–PrimeCare addressed emerging needs such as person-centered care, telehealth, and integrated behavioral health care. Over the past 10 years, UNC-PrimeCare secured more than $6.75 million in HRSA and state funding to train behavioral health students to serve in under-resourced communities. UNC-PrimeCare collaborated with partners such as Piedmont Health Services, a local FQHC, to create a robust, community-embedded training and care delivery model. The model includes the following features:

• Specialized trainee requirements: Required year-long internships, coursework that prioritizes patient safety, choice, and an understanding of past experiences; seminars; self-directed learning; and capstone projects. 
• Community-based practicum sites: Required student placement at health centers, community mental health and substance treatment centers, inpatient units, or schools to build real–world experience. 
• Support for site supervisors: Delivered topical, in-person and remote training for students and community partners, with continuing education credit.
• Interdisciplinary training approach: Trained students enrolled in a Master of Social Work (MSW) program alongside other trainees including psychiatric nurse practitioners, school counselors, and mental health counselors.
• Integrated primary & behavioral healthcare training: Provided comprehensive training in integrated health care to address both physical and behavioral health needs across the lifespan, guided by the core competencies for integrated behavioral health. 
• Telehealth accessibility: Added telehealth training focus during and after the pandemic to support and expand access for under-resourced populations. 

Impact:
✅ Trained more than 445 graduate-level behavioral health professionals across four disciplines.
✅ Research showed trained UNC-PrimeCare graduates were more likely to be employed quickly and earn higher salaries five-year post-graduation compared to other MSW students.
✅ Expanded behavioral health education capacity and secured program funding on the federal and state level.
✅ Training model has been replicated across other departments and supported new, funded workforce development training programs within the UNC School of Social Work. 
✅ Enabled continuity of care and better outcomes for individuals from under-resourced communities.