Cohen Veterans Network Hosts National Leadership Summit on Outpatient Mental Health Benchmarks

Leading Mental Health Experts Gather to Improve Quality
Standardization and Equity in Mental Health Care

STAMFORD, Conn., Oct. 27, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Cohen Veterans Network (CVN), a national not-for-profit network of mental health clinics for post-9/11 veterans, service members and their families kicked off its National Leadership Summit on Outpatient Mental Health Benchmarks in Washington, D.C. The event, funded by a grant from Oracle Cerner, a leading provider of digital information systems, has convened leading mental health experts including clinicians, researchers, and industry executives, and is focused on improving access, transparency, efficacy, and equity across mental health care. Participants will look to identify opportunities to use benchmarks to improve treatment effectiveness, standardization, comparability, and accountability across the field.

"Our commitment to quality care extends beyond the veteran and military communities, as our country faces unprecedented mental health challenges," said Cohen Veterans Network President & CEO Dr. Anthony Hassan. "We see benchmarking as a critical step toward improving effectiveness and supporting mental health care parity. Collaboration in this area is key, which is why we have assembled some of the best minds in the industry to share ideas and move the dialogue and the effort forward."

The one-and-a-half-day summit is a forum for thought leaders across the field of mental health to share insights, perspectives, and innovative ideas to develop consensus recommendations related to mental health benchmarks, quality, and measurement-based care. CVN will be issuing a white paper detailing the summit findings.

"Benchmarking represents a major opportunity to improve the quality and effectiveness of mental health care across the nation," said Dr. Andy Keller, President and CEO of the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute. "CVN's leadership in convening this summit with the brightest minds in behavioral health care will help advance the field toward much-needed equitable improvements to support quality mental health care for all who need it."

The summit is being led by Cohen Veterans Network Institute for Quality (CVN-IQ). The institute, which launched earlier this year, uses research, innovation, and collaboration with other military and veteran service agencies, mental health industry leaders and academic partners to improve treatment outcomes for veterans, service members and their families while enhancing their quality of life.

"CVN-IQ was established in part to solve problems and generate new ideas to improve mental health treatment outcomes," says CVN-IQ Director Dr. David Linkh. "This summit serves to do just that. We look forward to sharing the group's insights and recommendations about industry standards to enhance clinical care and advance the field."

CVN has treated more than 45,000 clients since its inception in 2016. The network provides high-quality, accessible mental health services to post-9/11 veterans, active duty service members and military family members through its 22 Cohen Clinics across the country. Treatment is available for a wide variety of mental health challenges including depression, anxiety, adjustment issues, anger, PTSD, grief and loss, family issues, transition challenges, relationship problems, and children's behavioral problems. Care is available in person or via CVN Telehealth, face-to-face video therapy.

ABOUT COHEN VETERANS NETWORK

Cohen Veterans Network (CVN) is a 501(c)(3) national not-for-profit philanthropic organization for post-9/11 veterans, active duty service members and their families. CVN focuses on improving mental health outcomes, operating a network of outpatient mental health clinics in high-need communities, in which trained clinicians deliver holistic evidence-based care to treat mental health conditions. It was established in 2016 by philanthropist Steven A. Cohen with a commitment of $275 million to build the network. Learn more about CVN here.

SOURCE Cohen Veterans Network