WITH mental health now regarded as equally important as physical well-being, PhilHealth-Davao is ramping up efforts to expand access to care in communities by increasing the number of contracted mental health facilities across the region.
During the PhilHealth Pulse (Promoting UHC through Linkages, Synergy, and Engagement) activity in Davao City, Dr. Gianelli Kristine Remocaldo, medical specialist of PhilHealth-Davao’s Health Care Delivery Management Division, said that despite the enhanced mental health benefit packages, only a limited number of facilities are currently accredited to provide the services in the region.
At present, Remocaldo revealed PhilHealth-Davao has only accredited and contracted three facilities: the City Health Office (CHO) of Mati – Balay Paanakan in Mati City, Davao Oriental; the City Health Office (CHO) of Tagum in Tagum City, Davao del Norte; and the Rural Health Unit (RHU) of Nabunturan in Nabunturan, Davao de Oro.
To expand the number of contracted mental health facilities in the region, Remocaldo said that they have partnered with the Department of Health (DOH)-Davao to identify potential facilities and professionals for accreditation.
As part of the process, these facilities and health workers will undergo the World Health Organization’s Mental Health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) training, which equips them, especially non-specialist providers, with the skills to assess and manage mental health conditions, she added.
“Healthcare is not measured in words but in accessibility,” Remocaldo emphasized, noting that increasing the number of facilities is a way to make PhilHealth’s mental health benefit packages more accessible to all members, particularly those in rural communities.
Remocaldo explained that PhilHealth primarily looks for two types of facilities to provide mental health services: mental health outpatient facilities or medicine access sites, and specialty centers.
For the former, she said they are targeting RHUs, CHOs, Level 1 and 2 hospitals, free-standing facilities, and other centers with trained family medicine practitioners, internists, emergency medicine physicians, pediatricians, or general practitioners, including municipal health officers trained under mhGAP.
The latter includes Level 3 hospitals or Level 2 hospitals with specialists such as psychiatrists, neurologists, and psychologists.
Under the Outpatient Benefits Package for Mental Health, Remocaldo explained that the covered services include both neurologic and psychological cases.
Neurologic cases include epilepsy, dementia, and child and adolescent mental and behavioral disorders, which allow for a minimum of four visits per year: one initial consultation and three follow-ups.
Psychological cases, such as depression, psychosis, and self-harm or suicide-related conditions, are allotted a minimum of eight visits per year: one initial and seven follow-up consultations.
In terms of package rates, the general mental health service package is pegged at P9,000 per person per year, covering assessment, essential diagnostic tests, and follow-up visits. Meanwhile, the specialty mental health service package is set at P16,000 per person per year, which covers assessments, diagnostic procedures, and follow-up consultations with specialists. PIA DAVAO