Managed care has produced dramatic changes in the treatment of mental health and substance abuse problems, known as behavioral health. Managing Managed Care offers an urgently needed assessment of managed care for behavioral health and a framework for purchasing, delivering, and ensuring the quality of behavioral health care. It presents the first objective analysis of the powerful multimillion-dollar accreditation industry and the key accrediting organizations. Managing Managed Care draws evidence-based conclusions about the effectiveness of behavioral health treatments and makes recommendations that address consumer protections, quality improvements, structure and financing, roles of public and private participants, inclusion of special populations, and ethical issues. The volume discusses trends in managed behavioral health care, highlighting the emerging role of the purchaser. The committee explores problems of overlap and fragmentation in the delivery of behavioral health care and discusses the issue of access, a special concern when private systems are restricted and public systems overburdened. Highly applicable to the larger health care system, this volume will be of particular interest to all stakeholders in behavioral healthâ€"federal and state policymakers, public and private purchasers, health care providers and administrators, consumers and consumer advocates, accrediting organizations, and health services researchers.

The fourth volume in the Systems of Care for Children's Mental Health series, this adaptable resource offers ways to improve children's mental health programs in a multicultural society. It clearly defines cultural competence and outlines strategies for fostering it in a wide variety of mental health programs for children from birth to age 18 and their families. Advice on special issues such as the impact on children of exposure to violence and substance abuse and stress in immigrant and refugee populations, as well as discussions of current systems and issues for future research, help make this an indispensable reference for social workers, counselors, psychiatrists, school psychologists, public health officials, and health care professionals.

Cultural differences affect the way people think, feel, and act. In an increasingly diverse society, multicultural competency in research and counseling is not merely a matter of political correctness. It is a matter of scientific and professional responsibility. Handbook of Multicultural Competencies in Counseling and Psychology is the first book to offer the theoretical background, practical knowledge, and training strategies needed to achieve multicultural competence. Focusing on a wide range of professional settings, editors Donald B. Pope-Davis, Hardin L.K. Coleman, William Ming Liu, and Rebecca L. Toporek provide a compendium of the latest research related to multicultural competency and the hands-on framework to develop specialized multicultural practices. Promoting an appreciation of cultural differences, this innovative text includes A review of major measures of multicultural competency An analysis of popular empirically supported treatments within the schema of multicultural competency Information on multicultural competencies and accreditation An overview of ethical implications Teaching strategies to achieve multicultural competency Handbook of Multicultural Competencies in Counseling and Psychology provides a comprehensive foundation for understanding and integrating multiculturalism in all areas of professional practice. Offering directions for growth and development, the editors and a distinguished group of contributors explore emerging issues within the field. An indispensable resource for psychologists, social workers, school counselors, and teachers, this handbook is also an ideal supplementary text for students in counseling and clinical practice courses.