title: Treating complexity: collaborative care for multiple chronic conditions.
abstract: Individuals with co-morbid chronic medical illness and psychiatric illness are a costly and complex patient population, at high risk for poor outcomes. Health-risk behaviours (e.g. smoking, poor diet, and sedentary lifestyle), side effects from psychiatric medications, and poor quality medical care all contribute to poor outcomes. Individuals with major depression die, on average, 5 to 10 years before their age-matched counterparts. For individuals with severe mental illness such as bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, life expectancy may be up to 20 years shorter. As the majority of this premature mortality is due to cardiovascular disease, there is a critical need to engage these individuals around the care of chronic medical illness.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington School of Medicine , Seattle, Washington , USA.
authors.forename: Lydia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chwastiak
authors.forename: Erik
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vanderlip
authors.forename: Wayne
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Katon
mesh_terms: D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D002908:Chronic Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D015897:Comorbidity; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D019033:Delivery of Health Care, Integrated / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000628:therapy*