Measurement based care is a growing model in the behavioral health field that uses systematic administration of symptom rating scales to help assess patients, drive beginning and ongoing treatment decisions, improve clinical outcomes, and measure results. It is gaining attention in the field, but there are still many behavioral health providers who don’t use measurement as part of their care.

Despite this, the benefits of measurement-based care are obvious. First, it helps you become more vested in your care and committed to reaching your goals. It also gives you objective information about your progress so you can better evaluate whether your therapist is providing you with the best possible care, or if they need to adjust their approach.

Second, it can be an important tool to use when negotiating with payors. If you show that the quality of your behavioral health services results in a tangible savings to the patient’s healthcare costs, you can build stronger relationships with your payors and get them to reward you for these results.

Third, it can serve as a catalyst for innovation in the industry. When more practices adopt this model, it can spur the development of new services and tools to make the process easier for both you and your patients.

Fourth, it can be an effective way to engage your patients and empower them to take control of their mental health. When your patients can monitor their own progress and make changes to their care plans based on what they’re seeing, it makes them more likely to stick with their treatment.

Fifth, it can help your staff be more data-driven and collaborative in their work. Having this kind of information at your fingertips can enable you to create more customized and data-driven care plans, which is important for improving the overall outcomes of your practice.

Sixth, it can be an efficient and cost-effective way to implement a patient-centric approach to treatment. When you can track your patient’s progress and make adjustments to their treatment plan, it saves you time and money by avoiding costly repeat visits.

Seventh, it can be a useful way to identify problem areas and trouble spots in your program so you can address them more quickly and effectively. For example, if your patient is not responding to treatment or they’re exhibiting more severe symptoms, you may need to take steps to remedy those issues before your practice is negatively impacted.

Eighth, it can be an effective way to communicate with your patients about their progress and how they are doing in therapy. Having this information at your fingertips can allow you to share this information with other members of your team and provide them with information about how you’re doing and what you need.

Tenth, it can be a valuable way to gather insights into your organization’s performance that can be used to enhance patient care and improve business. This type of data can be particularly useful in making strategic decisions about where you should shift resources and focus your efforts.