IBM Watson and ODH Inc., a behavioral health analytics company, have launched a population health management platform specifically for behavioral health organizations, the companies announced today.

The platform, dubbed Mentrics, will gather and combine behavioral and physical medical services and prescription claims data from Watson Health Cloud. The new tool is designed to create a more accurate profile of behavioral health patients, the vendors said.

“One of the biggest gaps in our health system today is behavioral healthcare,” Lauren O’Donnell, vice president, life sciences, at IBM Watson Health, said in a statement.

“Our goal with Mentrics is to make it easier for managed care organizations to achieve clinical and business goals in population health management while optimizing provider network performance so patients don’t fall through the cracks,” she added.

Providers can also use the broader data from Watson to improve data insights, such as similarity analytics and risk stratification, the vendors said. The platform can be deployed in the software-as-a-service model on the Watson Cloud and integrated with existing infrastructure and storage capacity.

Mentrics has been designed to target three behavioral health areas: population management, provider network performance and patient care coordination. Providers can customize the platform to target specific populations and trends to address any gaps in care, while assessing the effectiveness and risk-adjusted performance of providers, the vendors explained.

"New analytics tools are needed as behavioral health benefits are integrated into managed care plans,” said Arthur Webb, founder and group leader at the Arthur Webb Group, in a statement. Mentrics will become "an invaluable asset to managed care organizations responsible for behavioral health populations."

Twitter: @JessieFDavis
Email the writer: jessica.davis@himssmedia.com

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