title: Use of Veterans Health Administration Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Treatment After Exiting Prison: The Health Care for Reentry Veterans Program.
abstract: The Veterans Health Administration (VA) Health Care for Reentry Veterans (HCRV) program links veterans exiting prison with treatment. Among veterans served by HCRV, national VA clinical data were used to describe contact with VA health care, and mental health and substance use disorder diagnoses and treatment use. Of veterans seen for an HCRV outreach visit, 56 % had contact with VA health care. Prevalence of mental health disorders was 57 %; of whom 77 % entered mental health treatment within a month of diagnosis. Prevalence of substance use disorders was 49 %; of whom 37 % entered substance use disorder treatment within a month of diagnosis. For veterans exiting prison, increasing access to VA health care, especially for rural veterans, and for substance use disorder treatment, are important quality improvement targets.
authors.affiliation: Center for Innovation to Implementation (Ci2i), VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA. andrea.finlay@va.gov.
authors.forename: Andrea K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Finlay
authors.affiliation: Veterans Justice Programs, Department of Veterans Affairs, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.
authors.forename: Matthew
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Stimmel
authors.affiliation: Veterans Justice Programs, Department of Veterans Affairs, VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, 11301 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90073, USA.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Blue-Howells
authors.affiliation: Veterans Justice Programs, Department of Veterans Affairs, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.
authors.forename: Joel
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rosenthal
authors.affiliation: Veterans Justice Programs, Department of Veterans Affairs, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.
authors.forename: Jim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: McGuire
authors.affiliation: Kaiser Permanente Institute for Health Research, 10065 E. Harvard Avenue, Suite 300, Denver, CO, 80231, USA.|Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Colorado School of Medicine, 12631 E. 17th Avenue, Aurora, CO, 80045, USA.
authors.forename: Ingrid
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Binswanger
authors.affiliation: National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans, Edith Nourse Rogers Memorial Veterans Hospital, 200 Springs Road, Bedford, MA, 01730, USA.|Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, 55 N Lake Avenue, Worcester, MA, 01655, USA.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Smelson
authors.affiliation: Center for Innovation to Implementation (Ci2i), VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.
authors.forename: Alex H S
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Harris
authors.affiliation: Center for Innovation to Implementation (Ci2i), VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.|Women's Health Service, Medical Service, VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 3801 Miranda Avenue, Palo Alto, CA, 94304, USA.|Division of General Medical Disciplines, Stanford University School of Medicine, 1265 Welch Road, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Susan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Frayne
authors.affiliation: Center for Innovation to Implementation (Ci2i), VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.
authors.forename: Tom
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bowe
authors.affiliation: Center for Innovation to Implementation (Ci2i), VA Palo Alto Health Care System, 795 Willow Road, Menlo Park, CA, 94025, USA.|Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, 401 Quarry Road, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Christine
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Timko
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D011329:Prisoners / Q000523:psychology*; D011613:Psychotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States; D014728:Veterans / Q000523:psychology*; D058014:Veterans Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
keywords: Mental disorders; Mental health services; Prisoners; Substance use disorders; United States Department of Veterans Affairs; Veterans health