Office of Integrated Health

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What We Do

Child and mother sorting laundry
Mother and child sorting laundry

Mission: Supporting this life of possibilities by ensuring quality supports and a pathway to community integrated health services.To serve as a resource for information related to healthcare, wellness, healthcare providers, and health related services within the Commonwealth.

Since the opening of the first institution for “epileptics and the feeble minded”, Virginians involved in the care of persons with developmental disabilities (DD) have identified the gaps in services, living situation concerns, health care access issues, and even the terminology used to describe people with DD. There have been attempts over the years to effect change and improve access, but many were done at a regional level and failed to achieve widespread and lasting results.

The Office of Integrated Health (OIH) was established by the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services (DBHDS) in response to these needs. Its purpose is to build and improve on those past efforts and find new, innovative ways to effect change, and decrease inter and intradepartmental barriers across agencies. Consistent with the strategic goals of DBHDS the OIH assesses the needs and resources available for providing needed health services and supports to persons with DD and serious mental illness (SMI) throughout the Commonwealth. The OIH currently oversees and is responsible for the Health Support Network, and Long Term Care Services:
PASRR,OBRA, and the clinical operations of Hiram W. Davis Medical Center.

Health and Safety Alerts

2024 Alerts

2023 Alerts

2022 Alerts

  • Substance Use Disorders (SUD) – November 2022
  • Lower Risk of a Fatal Opioid Overdose with REVIVE! Training – November 2022
  • Nut Butters and Choking – September 2022  Updated 10.2023
  • Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities – August 2022  Updated 10.2023
  • Recognizing Declining Health – July 2022  Updated 10.2023
  • Anaphylaxis – June 2022  Updated 10.2023
  • Direct Support Professionals (DSP) – May 2022  Updated 10.2023
  • Wheelchair Safety and Maintenance – April 2022  Updated 10.2023
  • Leading Causes of Fatalities in DD – March 2022  Updated 10.2023
  • My Care Passport & Advocacy Tip Sheets – February 2022
  • Emergency Preparedness Part 1 – January 2022  Updated 10.2023

2021 Alerts

2020 Alerts

Safety Alerts Archive

Newsletters 2024

Newsletters 2023

Newsletters 2022

Newsletters 2021

Newsletters 2020

Newsletter Archive

What is the HSN?

In February 2014, the concept of the Health Support Network (HSN) was presented and discussed with stakeholders. After research, surveys, and community forum discussion, the HSN was created to provide services to meet the needs of those former residents of Training Centers, large Intermediate Care Facilities (ICFs) and Nursing Facilities (NFs) with developmental disabilities and/or serious mental health issues. Immediate needs that were identified included dental services, repair services for medical durable equipment, and technical assistance for community providers. It was also clear that community based nursing needed to be identified, bolstered and unified. The HSN under the umbrella of the Office of Integrated Health (OIH) has looked to provide progressive, excellence-based programs and services to address the unique needs of the Commonwealth as a whole and specific to regional concerns. It has been a learning process and a collaborative effort with stakeholders to ensure that the right services are being provided with the appropriate outcome expectations. To that end, program implementation has remained dynamic, with revisions and modifications made as needed.

The HSN’ s design presented in the initial concept paper of 2014 identified short term and long term concentrations of effort.

  • Short term: Identifying gaps in services and supports to immediately improve the quality of care and health
  • Long-term: Building the infrastructure of health professional knowledge through outreach and education

Over the last two years, the HSN has focused primarily on ensuring the implementation of the short-term goals while addressing long-term goal issues as they present. Currently the HSN has three programs that were designed and implemented from the ground up: Dental, Mobile Rehab Engineering, and Community Nursing.

Long Term Care

The Preadmission Screening and Resident Review (PASRR) process is a federal mandated process to ensure that individuals with a Serious Mental Illness (SMI), Intellectual Disability (ID), and/or a Related Condition (RC) are not inappropriately placed in nursing facilities. The PASRR process requires that all applicants to Medicaid-certified Nursing Facilities be given a preliminary assessment to determine whether they have a MI, ID, or a Related Condition that meets the criteria to be included in the PASRR process. This is called a “Level I screen”. Those individuals who are identified with a SMI, ID, or RC are then evaluated through the “Level II” PASRR process to ensure that the Individual meets the criteria for Nursing Facility admission and to make recommendations for rehabilitative and Specialized Services. 

The Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (OBRA) dates back to 1987. It was developed to ensure individuals residing in nursing facilities receive quality care and have access to specialized services that normally are not provided in a nursing facility. OBRA provides specialized services to individuals with mental illness, intellectual disability or related condition (developmental disability) who live in nursing facilities across the Commonwealth. Specialized services are those services individuals need to maximize self-determination and independence. Community living skills, assistive technology, day support, transportation and education are some of the services provided through specialized services. 

The Community Transition team was developed in an effort to implement a post-move monitoring process for children being discharged from a nursing facility to ensure that services and supports are in place at the time of their discharge and there are no gaps in care. The process will include the frequency and intensity of monitoring as appropriate to individual circumstances and a monitoring checklist. 

The purpose of this section is to provide individuals, families, and direct service providers ongoing health information in language that specifically lacks medical jargon. Every effort is made to be accurate, helpful, and current. None of the information is a substitute for seeking appropriate medical care. The goal is to provide a mix of information in a variety of formats around medical issues and just as important, the preventative needs of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. If you have suggestions for this page, please contact us by email with your ideas. Every effort will be made to address them in a timely fashion. 

Supplemental Education

The information below is specific to health prevention and education specifically targeted to non-medical professionals.

  • Constipation: Care Management, Medications and Recognizing Bowel Obstruction – April 2020 – Updated 10/2023
  • The Fatal Seven Newsletter – March – 2022
  • Constipation & the Importance of Bowel Monitoring Newsletter – April – 2020