DePaul Community Health Centers, a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), is expanding access to behavioral health services by introducing Open Access Behavioral Health appointments, allowing patients to schedule directly with a behavioral health provider without first establishing care with a DePaul primary care provider.
The change removes a common barrier that existed within many FQHCs, where patients received access to behavioral health services through a primary care visit. Now, DePaul offers direct access to help patients receive support for anxiety, depression, substance use disorders, and more, much sooner and more conveniently.
"Getting help shouldn't be complicated," says Mary Beth Alvarez, MD, DePaul’s Medical Director of Behavioral Health. "Behavioral health challenges can affect every part of a person's life. By removing extra steps, we're making it easier for people to access counseling, psychiatric care and other support services when they need them most."
DePaul's behavioral health team serves children, adolescents, and adults and provides a wide range of services designed to support whole-person wellness. Services include individual and group counseling, psychiatric evaluations, case management, peer support services, behavioral health screenings, medication assisted treatment, and more. Behavioral health care is available in-person at DePaul locations throughout the Greater New Orleans area and via telehealth services.
Patients have access to licensed clinical social workers, licensed professional counselors, psychiatrists, psychiatric nurse practitioners, medical psychologists, and other trained behavioral health specialists.
To schedule a behavioral health appointment, call (504) 207-3064; to learn more about the organization, visit DePaulCommunityHealthCenters.org.