Sacramento, California-based Sutter Health and startup Quartet Health will work together to improve ways of diagnosing and delivering care to residents living with mental health conditions, which are often connected to chronic physical illnesses.

Among some of Quartet’s work is broadening access to support services, addressing workplace mental health, and expanding the use of electronic video evaluations, Mental Health Services CEO John Boyd said in a statement.

“Strengthening our efforts to integrate mental healthcare throughout our system, specifically into our primary care network, and being a champion in community-based care is another critical part of the solution,” he said.

[Also: UPMC leads $17 million funding round for mental health startup Lantern]

Quartet technology identifies patients with underlying mental health conditions and helps primary care physicians quickly bring in the right specialists to collaborate with the primary care team on patients’ care.

Quartet creates a virtual, data-driven environment for shared care planning. It leverages a vetted group of local mental health specialists, live psychiatry consults for providers, data-driven insights through adaptive learning algorithms, and concierge-like support for patients.

“Our fractured health system needs to better support people living with mental health conditions,” Arun Gupta, founder and CEO of Quartet Health, said in a statement. As Gupta sees it, teaming up with leading insurers and health systems, Quartet can leverage technology to scale integrated healthcare models and also lower the cost of care.

Nearly half of the U.S. adult population has a chronic physical disease, and two-thirds of those have an accompanying mental health condition, and these patients account for 50 percent of overall healthcare spending, according to Quartet Health.

Emergency department visits and hospitalizations due to mental health conditions are at an all-time high – about four times the rate of the country and state benchmarks, according to the Sacramento Region Community Health Needs Assessment.

Sutter Medical Foundation and Sutter Medical Group will pilot Quartet’s technology in the Roseville, California area.

Twitter: @Bernie_HITN
Email the writer: bernie.monegain@himssmedia.com