Asante partners with Signet Health for behavioral health services

Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center offers the only inpatient care unit for behavioral health in Southern Oregon. The demand for this type of care is growing each year, creating new challenges for access and straining our limited resources.

To help us improve how we deliver care to our behavioral health population, Asante has partnered with Signet Health to manage ARRMC’s behavioral health service line. This includes oversight of the Behavioral Health Unit and Psychiatric Care Unit.

“Signet Health has extensive knowledge in clinical programs for behavioral health services in the geriatric, adult, adolescent and child populations,” said Joe Austin, interim CEO at ARRMC. “They can provide additional resources to improve the care we deliver to our behavioral health patients.”

Additional resources mean more staff. With the help of Signet, we’ll recruit a medical chair to support our provider team and build relationships with community stakeholders, and a community education coordinator to enhance relationships with our local partners.

A new director also will be recruited, one with a specific background in behavioral health and whose sole focus will be on our behavioral health service line. Kate Wallace, who currently oversees this department, will continue in her role as director of Nursing Services for Critical Care, the Heart Center and Outreach.

“I want to express my deepest gratitude to Kate, Andrea Goodboe and the entire Behavioral Health team for their amazing work of caring for some of our most vulnerable patients,” said Amanda Kotler, Asante’s chief nursing officer. “Together, with Signet Health, we’ll continue to create a culture of best practice through our shared experience and expertise.”

Signet Health is assessing our current policies and procedures and will provide recommendations for improvement. Asante will have access to SigNetwork, a web-based application that provides infrastructure for patient quality, experience and clinical data collection and reporting which allows for comparison data across the nation.

Additionally, BHU and PCU employees will have access to Signet Academy, an education portal with more than 100 online clinical modules for personal and professional learning and growth. “Our nurses who wish to become a registered psychiatric nurse can attend prep courses and our mental health assistants can become internally certified,” Austin added.

Asante sought guidance from Signet Health to help us optimize access to care, ED throughput, overall efficiency, regulatory compliance and payer relationships for our behavioral health services. The management company has 20-plus years of experience and partners with more than 60 health systems in 25 states to provide guidance about regulations, education and recruiting.