Research Article Open Access Forchuk et al., J Gen Pract 2014, 2:1 DOI: 10.4172/2329-9126.1000143 Research Article Open Access Volume 2 • Issue 1 • 1000143 J Gen Pract ISSN: 2329-9126 JGPR, an open access journal Introduction Te state of mental healthcare Te mental health care system in Canada is over-burdened, under- funded and highly unorganized despite attempts to move mental illness out of the shadows and onto the radar of policy and decision-makers [1-3]. In spite of eforts to optimize service models, mental illness remains as one of the biggest contributors to healthcare spending in Canada. In fact, the Public Health Agency of Canada reported that neuropsychiatric disorders had the highest expenditure for direct health services and the third-highest expenditure for indirect costs to the economy, related to illness, disability or premature death [4]. In 2008, the Canadian economic burden of mental illness in Canada was estimated to be $51 billion annually [5], a nearly 7-fold increase from a 1993 analysis that estimated the burden to be around $7.3 billion [6]. Forecasts approximate that direct costs related to mental illness over the next 30 years are likely to exceed $2.3 trillion [7]. Despite these high costs, only one third of those who seek mental health services in Canada actually receive them [8]. As the accountability of the public sector increases, fscal pressures will surely drive change in future healthcare spending. It is of utmost importance that these changes encompass evidence-informed solutions that will reduce the economic burden of mental illness without compromising the health and well- being of mental health consumers. Health services delivery Mental healthcare services remain fragmented and under-equipped to efectively accommodate those currently in the system. With patients and mental health care services transitioning from institutions to communities, new service delivery models are required to ensure that the Canadian mental health care system will be sustainable. Policy makers must look to new methods of delivering care that capitalize on health promotion, support and early intervention. An innovative and sustainable mode of care delivery is the use of smart technologies to enhance treatment, build capacity, and empower clients to take control of their own mental health. A new approach of delivering patient- centered care using technology has been proved to be efective in physical health promotion [9-13], and in the last decade this concept has shown great potential in psychiatric care. Web-based interventions such as online learning programs, Personal Health Records (PHR) and online databases with access to mental health resources have all generated positive outcomes for individuals with mental illness. *Corresponding author: Dr. Cheryl Forchuk, Lawson Clinical Research Leader, Mental Health Engagement Network, Canada, Tel: 519.685-8500 x.77034; E-mail: cforchk@uwo.ca Received October 11, 2013; Accepted December 30, 2013; Published January 07, 2014 Citation: Forchuk C, Rudnick A, Hoch J, Donelle L, Campbell R, et al. (2014) Mental Health Engagement Network: Innovating Community-Based Mental Healthcare. J Gen Pract 2: 143. doi: 10.4172/2329-9126.1000143 Copyright: © 2014 Forchuk C, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. Mental Health Engagement Network: Innovating Community-Based Mental Healthcare Forchuk C*, Rudnick A, Hoch J, Donelle L, Campbell R, Osaka W, Edwards B, Osuch E, Norman R, Vingilis E, Mitchell B, Reiss J, Corring D, Petrenko M, Godin M, Reed J and McKillop M Lawson Health Research Institute, Canada Abstract Background: Canadian mental health care reform calls for new service delivery models that capitalize on health promotion, support and early intervention as patients and services are transitioning from institutions to communities. The Mental Health Engagement Network (MHEN) intervention is a smart technology enabled service delivery model that electronically links individuals to their health care professionals, promoting information sharing between individuals and their health care professionals, and promoting access to mental health care services. This project, funded by Canada Health Infoway, began in September 2011 and will complete in March 2013. Methods: The MHEN project is a longitudinal, mixed qualitative and quantitative research study which has recruited 400 (245 men and 155 women) research participants diagnosed with a mood or a psychotic disorder who are currently working with community based mental health care professionals (54 mental health care professionals across 4 agencies in the London and surrounding area). Each participant has been randomly assigned into Group 1 (early intervention) or Group 2 (later intervention). Group 1 participants received an iPhone 4S, a TELUS health space™ account, and version 1.0 of the Lawson SMART record (a web-based application that provides individuals with a personal health record and tools to help them manage their health) in July, 2012. Participants in Group 2 initially acted as a control group, and received the version 2 intervention in March, 2013. Results: Participants felt the Lawson SMART record was quite (33.1%) or extremely (29.2%) helpful, and gave participants quite a bit more (26.8%) and an extreme amount more (21%) independence. Web analytics demonstrated that participants visited the Lawson SMART record mobile and desktop home page a total of 16, 928 times. Conclusion: This new service delivery model has the potential to provide quality care to those living in the community with mental illness, enhance health status and quality of life, and reduce the burden of mental illness on the healthcare system by decreasing more costly service uses. J o u r n a l o f G e n e r a l P r a c t i c e ISSN: 2329-9126 Journal of General Practice