Community of Practice

Thought Leadership Group for Community Mental Health Centers

Why a Community of Practice?

What is a Community of Practice (CoP)?

A Community of Practice, or CoP, is a group of individuals who share a common interest or profession and come together to learn, share knowledge, and collaborate. The key defining feature of a community of practice is the shared commitment to developing and improving the knowledge and skills within the community, with members taking an active role in helping each other learn and grow.

How will this help patients?

There is something CMHCs can do to start overcoming some of the challenges they face — something all other disease indications take for granted. Cancer, MS, and ALS patients are given the option to enroll in research to access the most cutting-edge treatments. The only thing preventing mental health practitioners from benefiting from research is stigma.

How will this help our center?

While CMHCs play an essential role in providing mental health care to vulnerable populations, they face several challenges, including funding and resource constraints, staffing shortages, stigma, limited access, integration with primary care, and limited resources for specialized services. We want to address these challenges and ensure that CMHCs can continue to provide high-quality care to their patients.

“A growing body of evidence is now demonstrating that research-active hospitals have better patient outcomes.”*

Dr. William van’t HoffClinical Director for NHS engagement,
National Institute for Health Research’s (NIHR) Clinical Research Network

We are building a pathway to mental health care equity
and addressing challenges specific to CMHCs.

A Community of Practice (CoP) can help create a culture of learning and collaboration that supports ongoing professional development, innovation, and the provision of high-quality care to patients. In this case, the CoP would include outside researchers, so that members can learn from one another and stay up-to-date with the latest research and information on mental health treatments.

Find Out More

We Can Be Better.

Let’s work together to offer the best services for our communities.