PARTNER

MUSC PARTNER Program

Quality Outcomes, Compassionate Care. A PARTNERship That Goes the Distance.

Overview 

The PARTNER program addresses the pressing need for mental health providers in South Carolina by growing the behavioral health workforce and enhancing the skills of psychiatric-mental health nurse practitioners (PMHNPs) to serve communities with limited access to care, including those in rural areas. This innovative program integrates behavioral health care into primary care settings using a collaborative care model, providing direct patient care and advanced clinical training for PMHNPs. By doing so, the program improves access to mental health services and enhances patient outcomes.

Integrated Collaborative Care Model

The collaborative care model (CoCM) employed by PARTNER enhances access and expands the capacity of behavioral health providers. Key features include:

• Integrated Behavioral Health in Primary Care: Patients are referred by primary care providers to PARTNER PMHNPs for comprehensive assessments and evidence-based recommendations. These recommendations are communicated to primary care providers, who maintain decision-making authority and manage patient treatment plans.

• Telepsychiatry Services: The program uses direct-to-consumer video conferencing platforms to provide psychiatric consultations, reducing the need for in-person visits and supporting rural primary care practices.

• Focus on Collaboration: PARTNER emphasizes the relationship between patients and their primary care providers, with mental health providers serving as consultants to enhance care delivery.
  
  
  

Training and Upskilling for PMHNPs

PARTNER provides a 13-month advanced clinical training experience for newly graduated Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse Practitioners (PMHNPs). This unique opportunity enhances competency and confidence in delivering integrated mental health care. Training highlights include:

Eligibility: Open to PMHNPs who have graduated within the past two years from an accredited master’s or doctoral program and are board-certified as PMHNP-BC. Participants must be eligible to practice in South Carolina and dedicated to collaborative care and expanding access to behavioral health services, particularly in areas with limited healthcare resources. The role includes in-person commitments in the Charleston area at least two days per week, which requires proximity to the area.

Structured Experiential Training: Participants spend 80% of their time delivering direct patient care and 20% on education and professional development activities, including clinical decision-making, psychopharmacology, psychotherapy, billing compliance, and collaborative care models.

Comprehensive Support: Through clinical mentoring, case presentations, and small group sessions, participants build expertise and autonomy while addressing individual learning needs. The program prepares PMHNPs to provide behavioral health care that meets the specific challenges of communities with limited healthcare access, including those in rural areas.

Program Goals

• Program Goals Increase Access to Care: Expand evidence-based, cost-effective behavioral health services within primary care using an integrated collaborative care model.

• Upskill PMHNPs: Enhance provider knowledge, confidence, and autonomy in delivering collaborative care in communities.

• Develop a Skilled Workforce: Increase the number of highly skilled PMHNPs within the MUSC Health system.

• Promote Behavioral Health: Leverage collaborative care and telehealth to improve access in communities with limited health care.
  
  

Partnerships and Commitment

PARTNER is a collaboration between the MUSC Center for Telehealth and the Institute of Psychiatry. PMHNPs are oriented and credentialed to MUSC Health, ensuring alignment with the organization’s culture, practice, and values. This integration addresses critical workforce shortages by providing direct patient care and advanced clinical training, enhancing access to behavioral health services and in mental health care delivery across South Carolina.

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