Blue Mountain Associates joins the GRH Health System
By Paul Hall on Tuesday, March 23rd, 2021 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
LA GRANDE — Grande Ronde Hospital and Clinics (GRH) is pleased to announce that Blue Mountain Associates (BMA), La Grande; an outpatient mental health treatment center, will become part of the GRH health system. A full transition to a new GRH Behavioral Health Clinic is expected to begin June 1, 2021.
GRH President and CEO Jeremy Davis said the acquisition means better care for Union County residents and allows for full integration of behavioral health care into the GRH system. He cited the trend over the last decade toward a multi-discipline care track that places the patient at the center of a collaborative expertise model designed to treat the whole patient with medical, mental and behavioral services.
“We believe this integration of services will help improve coordination and access for a broader spectrum of health services for the people of Union County,” said Davis.
Dr. Rice, who started BMA almost 30 years ago, echoed Davis’ statement.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Dr. Rice. “The process of integrating behavioral healthcare into primary care clinics, hospital wards and emergency rooms is the cutting edge of innovation in health care not only nationally, but worldwide.”
The integrated team of BMA and GRH associates will eventually work from the BMA’s current location at 1101 I Avenue, La Grande; providing a home base as both entities work to ensure a smooth transition. BMA patients should notice very little difference in their care. The current GRH Behavioral Health team will also continue to see patients in all current primary care locations. However, Dr. Rice will also have an office in the Regional Medical Clinic (RMC).
Davis added that having the first psychiatrist on staff at the RMC gives the organization a key foundational building block for recruiting additional psychiatrists to the GRH team. Notably, the RMC is also the first primary care clinic in Union County to have a pharmacist on staff.
GRH was an early adopter of the Comprehensive Primary Care Initiative launched in 2012 that set the stage for population-based care management and cost savings opportunities. It was the foundation for a broader initiative – Comprehensive Primary Care Plus – launched in 2017, which seeks to improve quality, access, and efficiency of primary care. Numerous studies show that the integration of medical, mental and behavioral health services can serve to reduce the demand on emergency services in community hospitals.
