About this Presentation
In partnership with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Montana, NAMI New Mexico, and NAMI Westside Los Angeles, and funded by a $2.4M Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) award, we conducted focus groups with individuals with bipolar disorder as well as family members around the central theme, “What do you wish you had known in advance or over the course of treatment for bipolar disorder?”. The objective of this study was to engage with our patient partners to understand the challenges faced in managing bipolar disorder, to elicit questions of concern to patients, and to propose models that highlight root causes where limited resources can be deployed to achieve the highest impact. Our NAMI patient partners directly participated in building models with the focus group data. We used the Theory of Constraints change matrix, evaporating cloud, communication current reality tree and future reality tree tools to both diagnose systemic challenges and pose directions towards solutions.
What Will You Learn
To help you get the most value from this session, we’ve highlighted a few key points. These takeaways capture the main ideas and practical insights from the presentation, making it easier for you to review, reflect, and apply what you’ve learned.
Patients with bipolar disorder often face a difficult choice between seeking pharmacotherapy and experiencing its side effects, or avoiding pharmacotherapy and continuing to experience the symptoms of bipolar disorder.
Many patients seek alternative treatments, but these are often not sufficient to alleviate their symptoms.
The mental health system often fails to meet the needs of patients, with issues such as short provider visits, lack of support, and limited access to services.
Instructor(s)
Christophe Lambert
Christophe G. Lambert, Ph.D., is a Professor of Medicine and Division Chief of Translational Informatics at the University of New Mexico. He is also the founder, past CEO and current Chairman of Golden Helix, a Bozeman-based bioinformatics company. Throughout his career, he has applied systems thinking to the challenging problems affecting life sciences and healthcare research, with numerous articles and presentations diagnosing systemic problems and prescribing the change management required for improvement. As a lifetime TOCICO member, certified in the Theory of Constraints (TOC) Fundamentals (2004) and Thinking Processes (2006), he applied TOC within his own company for a decade, and currently applies it to problems in mental and organizational health. Originally from Canada, Dr. Lambert received his bachelor’s degree from Montana State University, and a PhD in computer science from Duke University.
Ms Alka Wadhwa
Alka Wadhwa is an experienced consultant and process improvement expert with over 24 years of expertise in the Theory of Constraints (TOC), Lean Six Sigma, and organizational performance optimization. She has successfully led projects in healthcare, financial services, and manufacturing, driving significant improvements such as a 67% boost in hospital operations and a 140% increase in outpatient visits.
Previously, Alka Wadhwa spent 17+ years at GE Global Research Center, where she led initiatives to enhance various GE businesses through advanced technologies, process redesign, and system optimization. Founder of Better Solutions Consulting, LLC, she specializes in using TOC, Six Sigma, and data analytics to streamline operations and build high-performance teams.
Her work has earned her multiple accolades, including the Empire State Award of Excellence in healthcare.
Dr Gary Wadhwa
Dr. Gary Wadhwa is a Board Certified Oral & Maxillofacial Surgeon with extensive experience in the field. He completed his Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery training at Montefiore Hospital, Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, NY, and has served as an Attending at prestigious institutions like St. Peters Hospitals, Ellis Hospital, and Beth Israel Hospital in NY. With a career spanning over two decades, he was the former CEO and President of a group specialty practice in NY from 1994 to 2015. Dr. Wadhwa holds an MBA from UT at Knoxville, TN, and has undergone additional training in System Dynamics at MIT, Health System Management at Harvard Business School, and Entrepreneurship and healthcare innovations at Columbia Business School. Committed to expanding access to Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery care, he is currently engaged in a meaningful project to provide healthcare services to underserved populations in inner city and rural areas through non-profit Community Health Centers.