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HL Shorts: How to Embed Mental Health Professionals in Primary Care Practices

Analysis  |  By Christopher Cheney  
   June 02, 2025

Embedding behavioral health professionals in primary care practices drives significant benefits for patients and health systems.

Providing patient access to behavioral health services is a challenge for health systems. Virtua Health is taking on this challenge by integrating those services with primary care providers.

For patients, one of the benefits of embedding behavioral health professionals in primary care practices is reducing the stigma of seeking behavioral healthcare, says Samuel Weiner, MD, vice president and CMO of Virtua Medical Group, which is part of Virtua Health.

"By embedding psychiatrists in our primary care practices, patients don't have to worry that they have been referred to a psychiatrist's office or a therapy office," he says. "They are just going to their primary care office."

View the video below to find out about Virtua Health's model for embedding mental health professionals in primary care practices. Click here to read the accompanying HealthLeaders story.

Christopher Cheney is the CMO editor at HealthLeaders.


KEY TAKEAWAYS

Virtua Health has embedded licensed clinical social workers, a psychiatric nurse practitioner, and psychiatrists in primary care practices.

Return on investment for these care models includes increased patient satisfaction.

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