Maintaining and enhancing shared care relationships through the Tipp clinical model.

Abstract

The Transition into Primary Care Psychiatry (TIPP) clinical model, a shared mental healthcare service implemented at London and Thunder Bay, Ontario, facilitates collaboration in mental health service delivery for patients with chronic mental illness. In this program, people with stable but chronic mental illness are transitioned back to the family physician with assistance from a team consisting of a mental health nurse with expertise in psychiatry and a psychiatrist. Continuity of care is provided in the family physician's office by regular consultations with the psychiatrist and nurse, and community services are provided as needed for individual clients. The experience with TIPP suggests that collaboration and satisfaction can be achieved among the different disciplines involved in providing shared mental healthcare. These findings contribute valuable information for policy research and may be used to determine if the TIPP clinical model can be more widely applied in the province of Ontario.