Improving Mental Healthcare Outcomes for Minoritized Veterans Through a Peer-led, Patient Navigation Program (PARTNER-MH 2.0)

The proposed project is a randomized controlled trial that seeks to test the effectiveness of a peer-facilitated, patient navigation program to improve mental healthcare experiences and outcomes for under-supported Veterans from diverse cultural backgrounds and communities. PARTNER-MH is a structured, telehealth-based intervention delivered by VHA peer specialists over a three-month period. It integrates two evidence-based care delivery models, peer support and patient navigation, and addresses three primary contributors to healthcare disparities: unmet social needs, low patient engagement in care, and unproductive patient-clinician communication. Findings from this study will support ongoing efforts to improve mental health services for all Veterans in the VHA.

Inclusion Criteria: * Member of a racial or ethnic minoritized group * Veterans who are currently receiving or waiting to receive treatment in the outpatient mental health clinics or affiliated CBOCS at the study sites * Eligible participants must be: * waiting to start treatment (e.g., Veterans who were referred to treatment, assigned a provider, or recommended a treatment option that includes either pharmacotherapy, psychotherapy, or both but have not yet started treatment at time of enrollment) * Veterans who are already receiving ongoing treatment - pharmacotherapy, individual, and/or group psychotherapy, but initiated treatment within 9 months of study enrollment date * Have a diagnosis of depression, anxiety, or PTSD * Not currently receiving peer services in the outpatient clinic Exclusion Criteria: * Patients needing emergency psychiatric services of hospitalization due to suicidal ideation or recent suicide attempt (within past 2 months), have severe psychiatric symptoms (e.g., active psychosis), or a diagnosis of severe mental illness (e.g., schizophrenia) * Severe cognitive, hearing, or speech impairment (e.g., dementia, severe TBI) * Severe physical illness that impedes study participation * Recent hospitalization for substance use disorder (SUD) for the past 2 months or severe SUD symptoms based on the screen tools (AUDIC-C, DAST-10) that may require higher level of care and peer support