Spatial Typologies of Care: Understanding the Implications of the Spatial Distribution of Off-Base Civilian Behavioral Health Providers Who Accept TRICARE Prime to Service Persons and Their Dependents
Name
Schultheis&Glasmeier2015MM_SpatialTypologiesOfCare.pdf
Size
681.47 KB
Format
Adobe PDF
Checksum (MD5)
36d820fc5d49c6f255b8c88cbe8cfceb
Author(s)
Schultheis, Eric
Glasmeier, Amy
Date Issued
2015
Publisher
Military Medicine
Citation
Schultheis, E. and A. Glasmeier. (2015). Spatial Typologies of Care: Understanding the Implications of the Spatial Distribution of Off-Base Civilian Behavioral Health Providers Who Accept TRICARE Prime to Service Persons and Their Dependents. Military Medicine, 180(9), 979–985
Abstract
Over the last decade, demand for services from military treatment facilities (MTFs) has frequently
exceeded capacity resulting in increased usage of off-base civilian Tricare providers (OCTP). This capacity shortage
has been particularly acute for mental health care. At many installations, OCTPs are the main source of mental health
care for military personnel and their families. Utilizing data on the location of mental health OCTPs and demographic
data, we examine the spatial accessibility of mental health OCTPs around five military installations. Variation exists in
the spatial accessibility of mental health OCTPs depending on the geographic context of an installation. There is a
mild correlation between the number of mental health OTCPs proximate to a base and the beneficiaries enrolled in an
MTF. There is a strong correlation between the size of the general population proximate to an installation and the
number of mental health OCTMPs present. Installations located in densely populated areas had high ratios of mental
health OCTPs to the MTF beneficiary population but not when the civilian demand on these providers was accounted
for. This study’s findings open several avenues for future research and policy aimed at increasing the effectiveness of
the mental health OCTP network.
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