For the past 25 years, the Community Behavioral Healthcare Network in Northeastern Pennsylvania has delivered services to people of all ages with mental illness, chemical dependency, and developmental disabilities. Since the advent of managed behavioral health care in the late 1980’s, a great concern has been the failure of behavioral health systems to establish best practice models based on outcome data. The absence of longitudinal efforts to determine efficacy of treatment interventions is hazardous to payers, providers, and consumers of behavioral health care.

Recognizing the significance of outcome measurement, the provider community in Northeastern Pennsylvania envisioned the development of an institute to study behavioral health issues and treatment outcomes. In 1998, the Behavioral Health Research Institute was created. The institute has been incorporated as a 501 (C) (3) nonprofit organization.

The Behavioral Health Research Institute is collaboration among provider networks and academic institutions. The Community Behavioral Healthcare Network has joined forces with Marywood University, The University of Scranton, King’s College, Wilkes University, and College Misericordia to develop, gather, evaluate, and report outcome data. The purpose of the Institute is to determine appropriate and cost effective clinical standards for behavioral health care. The ultimate goal is to improve the quality of mental health, substance abuse, and developmental disabilities services.

The Community Behavioral Health Care Network of Northeastern Pennsylvania serves over 30,000 consumers each year. The provider community has long recognized the important role of outcome measurement in the future allocation of resources. The Behavioral Health Research Institute has the potential to greatly benefit the field of behavioral health care as well as the communities we serve.

Contact information: Jeffrey D. Leitzel, Ph.D., Executive Director
Behavioral Health Research Institute, 326 Adams Ave., Scranton, PA 18503
Voice:(570) 650-6286 e-mail: BHRI@BHRI.NET