How Children’s Wisconsin Partnered with Iris Telehealth to Improve Access to Child Psychiatry

Children’s Wisconsin partnered with Iris Telehealth to address a growing need for pediatric mental and behavioral health care and a child psychiatry waitlist of more than 300 patients. By integrating remote providers with specialized experience into its clinical teams, Children’s Wisconsin expanded capacity, overcame geographic recruitment barriers, and improved access to psychiatric care for children and families across the stat.

Background

Wisconsin faced a significant shortage of child psychiatrists, with children waiting an average of six months to two years for care. At the time highlighted in the case study, 48 of the state’s 72 counties had no child psychiatrists, with only 135 practicing statewide. Children’s Wisconsin, a nationally ranked, freestanding acute care pediatric hospital, experienced the impact of this shortage firsthand as demand for mental and behavioral health services continued to outpace available providers.

Challenge

Children’s Wisconsin faced geographic and recruitment challenges as it worked to expand its psychiatry department. Traditional recruiting efforts were not producing enough providers, while demand continued to grow, particularly among children requiring specialized care. With more than 300 children waiting for psychiatric services, the organization needed providers experienced in areas such as trauma and out-of-home care, as well as a solution that could overcome the geographic and financial barriers associated with recruiting these specialists.

Solution

Children’s Wisconsin partnered with Iris Telehealth to integrate remote telebehavioral health providers with subspecialty expertise into its existing clinical teams. The virtual model allowed the organization to sidestep geographic recruitment barriers while adding providers qualified to work with challenging patient populations. Iris collaborated with Children’s Wisconsin to understand its specific clinical needs and identify providers who aligned with the organization’s mission and values, creating an integrated extension of the existing care team.

Results

Expanding the clinical team through telebehavioral health increased Children’s Wisconsin’s capacity and helped reduce its child psychiatry backlog. At one point, the waitlist of more than 300 children dropped to zero, and the seven-month backlog that had previously existed was eliminated. Families reported positive experiences with remote providers, who successfully built rapport and connections with patients during virtual visits. The partnership also supported provider credentialing and inspired Children’s Wisconsin to explore additional initiatives, including embedding an Iris provider within primary care to support its Integrated Behavioral Health program.

To learn more about Children’s Wisconsin, you can visit their website here. If you’d like learn more about collaborating with Iris to improve access to mental healthcare in your community, contact us today!