Wheeler this spring will expand the scope of its federally qualified health center designation to include existing outpatient service sites in Hartford and New Britain to meet the healthcare needs of individuals with serious mental illness and co-occurring substance abuse disorders, it announced this week.
Wheeler’s Health & Wellness Center in Bristol achieved designation as a federally qualified health center last August.
Individuals with serious mental illness and co-occurring substance abuse disorders are often reluctant to engage in primary care services and experience disparities in access to health care and healthcare outcomes, Wheeler said in a news release.
Many patients it serves from Hartford, New Britain and surrounding communities do not have a primary care physician, have multiple co-morbid health disorders and frequently visit emergency rooms.
Wheeler has created a pilot program integrating trauma-sensitive primary and behavioral health care services at its Hartford outpatient location and will provide a similar model in its New Britain location.
Wheeler’s Hartford Health & Wellness Center, 999 Asylum Ave., will provide primary care, behavioral health services including psychiatry and enabling services, and links to specialty care. St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center will help with service delivery and coordination. ​
Wheeler will expand its New Britain Health & Wellness Center, 75 North Mountain Road, to provide primary care, behavioral health services including psychiatry and enabling services and links to specialty care. Bristol Hospital will help with service delivery and coordination.
