Expanding psychiatry and addiction medicine training in Nevada

Access to mental health care is crucial for improving overall health outcomes, but challenges like physician shortages can create barriers to access, which in turn contribute to disparities in health outcomes. Nevada faces a stark shortage of mental health professionals. 86.8% of Nevadans reside in a mental health physician shortage area.¹ The state has one mental health provider for every 420 residents, and 61% of Nevada adults who have a mental illness did not receive treatment.²

To address the shortage of mental health providers and improve access to high-quality health care, UnitedHealthcare Health Plan of Nevada Medicaid is investing $500,000 over the next two years in the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine (UNR Med). UNR Med aims to train and retain highly skilled medical professionals to serve Nevada communities through their Psychiatry Residency and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry Fellowship programs. This funding will increase the number of spots available for fellows and residents, enhance programming, create wellness and development activities to support retention, and support the development of a new Addiction Medicine Fellowship. Through these programs, UNR Med is developing the next generation of medical providers to care for people across Reno, Tahoe, and the surrounding Sierra Nevada region including underserved rural communities.

UNR Med will use the funding to invest in wellness and development for residents, fellows and faculty. This includes:

• Quarterly leadership seminars for chief residents, who receive mentorship related to leadership skills and navigating their roles.
• Presentations from national speakers at Grand Rounds and workshops to cover topics like structural racism in health care.
• Hands-on experience for residents at clinics and local community health programs.
• Incentives for residents to participate in scholarly research, including resident and faculty publication of book chapters and articles in peer-reviewed research journals.
• Resources like psychotherapy and pharmacology textbooks and access to up-to-date medical literature.

These resources and experiences will help ensure that residents and fellows receive a comprehensive and high-quality education, which is crucial for their development as healthcare providers. Additionally, UNR Med will develop programming to address burnout, both among students and faculty.

In addition to expanding capacity and developing existing psychiatry programs, UNR Med will establish a new Addiction Medicine fellowship. The team is actively building staffing capacity, developing curriculum and pursuing accreditation to launch the program. Nevada has one of the highest rates of non-medical drug use in the country and has experienced a significant increase in drug overdose deaths.^3,4 The creation of this fellowship will increase the number of providers who are trained to care for people experiencing substance use disorder, enabling more Nevadans to access the care they need.

Through this collaboration with University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine, UnitedHealthcare Health Plan of Nevada Medicaid aims to positively impact the community by:

• Increasing access to health care, including in underserved communities, to improve health outcomes and reduce disparities
• Supporting research and innovation to advance health care in Nevada and across the country
• Develop and support the health care workforce, increasing capacity and bolstering the wellness of providers and faculty.

This investment represents an important step in strengthening the health care workforce serving Nevada and addressing barriers to accessing mental health care. This collaboration will improve access to mental health care by enhancing educational and development opportunities and increasing the number of highly trained board-eligible psychiatrists serving the community.