Integrating Mental Health and Substance Use Services: Resources and Materials

These materials are designed to offer information, resources, and guidance to help mental health and substance use programs improve their care for clients who cope with mental health and substance use conditions at the same time.

In 2008, NYHealth began a five-year initiative to improve the care for people struggling with both mental health and substance use issues (often called co-occurring disorders). The Foundation established the Center for Excellence in Integrated Care (CEIC), an initiative that was the first of its kind to address people’s co-occurring disorders. The main goal of CEIC was to build the capacity of licensed addiction and mental health programs across the State to provide integrated clinical care for people with co-occurring disorders. By 2013, CEIC exceeded its target of working with 600 of the estimated 1,000 licensed mental health and substance use programs across the State.

The resources and materials below have been developed by CEIC, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and others to assist programs in implementing or advancing an integrated approach to care for clients with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.

Clinical Pathways Resource Guide provides basic guidance for counselors working with people with co-occurring conditions.

Co-Occurring Capable Program Guidelines presents program guidelines to ensure responsiveness to the needs of individuals with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders in treatment programs at all levels of clinical care.

Co-Occurring Enhanced Program Guidelines outlines guiding principles for treating individuals with co-occurring disorders from two key publications and presents Connecticut’s Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services’ guidelines for enhancing programs.

CEIC Training Resource Guide outlines and organizes the structure of several integrated care training programs.

Getting to “Capable:” CEIC Quick Guide provides 10 recommendations to develop new programs to effectively meet the needs individuals with co-occurring mental health treatment and drug use therapy.

Getting to “Enhanced:” CEIC Quick Guide provides 10 recommendations to enhance established programs to effectively meet the needs individuals with co-occurring mental health treatment and drug use therapy.

Dual Diagnosis Capability in Addiction Treatment offers a rating-scale sheet to assess and score the services offered through addiction treatment programs.

Dual Diagnosis Capability in Mental Health Treatment offers a rating-scale sheet to assess and score the services offered through mental health treatment programs.