UltraGroup Healthcare News
News & Inspiration | Sept. 2026
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Fairfield Welcome Cathleen & Linda
Cathleen Garner, LSW-M, is a therapist with the Senior Life Solutions program, bringing more than a decade of experience in mental health and working with the geriatric population. Cathleen earned her Master's degree in Social Work at the University of Buffalo in New York, where she is originally from. She has a passion for working with older adults and finds great fulfillment in helping them thrive. "It's truly an honor to be a part of their life, and an even greater honor to teach them about mental health and how to navigate life's challenges." Outside of work, Cathleen enjoys spending time with family and her dog, baking, cooking, running, and biking. A fun fact about Cathleen is she can ride 100 miles on a bike without batting an eye.
Linda Hutchcraft is the program's Unit Clerk. She graduated from University of Evansville with a degree in Psychology in 1983. She spent 15 years working as a social worker, mostly with the geriatric population in Indiana. Upon return to Illinois, she worked as unit secretary/tele tech at a local hospital before coming to FMH in 2023 as unit secretary on Med Surg. Linda has always loved spending time with the elderly. She stated "there is so much to learn from them and I enjoy hearing about the old days. They have paid their debt, and now its time to repay them in whatever way I can." Linda enjoys reading, thrifting and crafting in her spare time.
Construction Begins Soon
The staff at New Beginnings at Livingston Hospital participated in a memorable moment by being a part of the Beam Signing event celebrating an exciting milestone at Livingston Hospital. The new hospital construction continues to move forward, generating excitement in the community as they watch this important project become a reality.
Promoting Mental Wellness for Older Adults
Shelby Richardson, Program Director for Tranquility at Breckenridge Health, joined hospital staff and community organizations at the Breckenridge County Resource Fair. The event connected local families with information about programs and services available throughout the community.
Shelby shared information about Tranquility and emphasized the importance of recognizing and addressing mental health needs among older adults. Her participation helped attendees learn more about available support and resources for promoting emotional well-being.
Keri Williams, Regional Director, participated in the Livingston Hospital annual golf tournament, sponsored by UltraGroup. The hospital foundation raises money to help support the hospital mission.
Connecting Seniors with Behavioral Health Resources
Monica Johnson and KenYatta Williams represented Senior Perspectives at the annual Med Center Scottsville Health Fair, connecting with community members and sharing information about the program and the services it provides.
Health fairs like this offer an important opportunity to bring healthcare resources directly into the community. Monica and KenYatta spoke with attendees, answered questions and helped raise awareness of the mental health and emotional wellness resources available through Senior Perspectives.
For older adults and their families, knowing where to turn for support can make an important difference. Senior Perspectives is committed to helping older adults navigate challenges that can affect their emotional well-being and quality of life.
Through community events such as the Health Fair, the Senior Perspectives team continues to build connections, increase awareness and help ensure local seniors and their families know that support is available when they need it..
Strengthening Community Awareness & Referral Pathways
Senior behavioral health intensive outpatient programs serve a vital role in small rural communities. For many older adults, depression, anxiety, grief, isolation, trauma, caregiver stress, and adjustment to medical decline are often hidden beneath physical health concerns or dismissed as a normal part of aging. A well-positioned senior IOP can help patients remain safely in the community, reduce unnecessary hospitalizations, support primary care and emergency departments, and improve quality of life for older adults and their families.
In rural markets, however, patient recruitment cannot rely on broad advertising alone. Successful programs build trust through education, visibility, and consistent relationships. The most effective outreach strategy begins inside the hospital, then extends outward into the community.
Start With Internal Awareness
Hospital-based referrals are often the most immediate and reliable source of appropriate senior IOP admissions. Many patients who could benefit from IOP are already interacting with the hospital through the emergency department, inpatient medical units, discharge planning, primary care clinics, specialty clinics, or care management.
To strengthen internal referral awareness, senior IOP teams should provide brief, practical education to hospital departments on the signs that an older adult may need a higher level of behavioral health support. Staff should know that senior IOP may be appropriate when a patient is experiencing persistent depression or anxiety, frequent tearfulness, grief, social withdrawal, caregiver strain, medication nonadherence related to mood, repeated emergency visits without clear medical cause, difficulty coping with chronic illness, or declining functioning after a major life change.
Education should be simple and repeated often. Short huddles, lunch-and-learns, quick reference cards, EHR referral instructions, and case-based examples can help hospital staff understand who qualifies, how to refer, and what happens after the referral is made. A strong message is: “If you are concerned about an older adult’s mood, coping, isolation, or ability to function safely at home, call us and we will help determine whether IOP is appropriate.”
Make Referrals Easy
Small rural hospitals often operate with lean staffing, so referral processes must be fast and clear. Departments are more likely to refer when they know exactly whom to contact and what information is needed.
Helpful strategies include:
A single referral phone number or secure message pathway
Same-day response to internal referral questions whenever possible
A one-page referral guide for discharge planners, ED staff, primary care offices, and inpatient units
EHR order sets or referral templates, if available
A brief “IOP eligibility checklist” for common warning signs
Warm handoffs before discharge when clinically appropriate
Feedback to the referring department after the patient is contacted or admitted
Internal referral relationships improve when hospital staff see that the IOP team is responsive, clinically helpful, and respectful of their time.
Build Community Education Around Problems People Recognize
In rural communities, behavioral health stigma can prevent older adults and families from seeking help. Community education should focus less on labels and more on lived experiences. Instead of leading with “psychiatric treatment,” programs can educate around themes such as loneliness, grief after loss, coping with medical illness, caregiver burnout, depression in later life, anxiety, sleep disruption, and loss of independence.
Effective community education partners may include senior centers, churches, primary care clinics, home health agencies, assisted living facilities, skilled nursing facilities, pharmacies, EMS, libraries, meal programs, veterans’ groups, funeral homes, caregiver support groups, and local civic organizations.
Educational presentations should be practical, warm, and brief. Topics might include:
“When Sadness Is More Than Grief”
“Anxiety and Depression in Older Adults”
“Supporting a Loved One Who Is Withdrawing”
“The Emotional Side of Chronic Illness”
“Caregiver Stress and When to Ask for Help”
“Reducing Isolation in Later Life”
Each presentation should include clear information on how to contact the program, what IOP is, how often patients attend, transportation options if available, and how the program supports both patients and families.
Use Relationship-Based Outreach
In small rural locations, trust is built face to face. Referral development should focus on consistent relationship-building rather than one-time visits. Program representatives should maintain a regular schedule of outreach to high-value referral partners, including primary care practices, hospital-owned clinics, home health agencies, nursing facilities, and community organizations serving older adults.
A strong outreach visit should include education, listening, and problem-solving. Ask referral partners what behavioral health challenges they are seeing, what gaps they experience, and what would make referral easier. When the IOP can solve a real problem for a partner, referrals become more natural and sustainable.
Collaborate Across the Hospital
Senior IOPs are strongest when they are seen not as a separate program, but as a resource for the entire hospital. Interdepartmental collaboration can help meet broader hospital needs, including reducing avoidable ED utilization, improving discharge planning, supporting chronic disease management, reducing caregiver strain, strengthening transitions of care, and improving patient satisfaction.
Collaboration can be enhanced by:
Attending case management and discharge planning meetings
Providing education to ED and inpatient teams on behavioral health warning signs in older adults
Creating a direct referral pathway from primary care and specialty clinics
Partnering with social work on patients with isolation, grief, or caregiver stress
Supporting quality initiatives related to readmissions, population health, and care transitions
Sharing appropriate outcome data with hospital leadership and referral departments
Participating in community health needs assessment initiatives
Offering consultation when departments are unsure whether a patient meets criteria
The goal is to make the senior IOP a visible, helpful clinical partner. When departments understand that the program can support their patients and ease operational pressure, collaboration improves.
Track What Works
Rural programs should monitor referral sources, admission conversion rates, reasons referrals are not admitted, attendance patterns, and common barriers such as transportation, stigma, medical instability, or lack of family support. Reviewing this information regularly helps the team adjust outreach efforts and identify where additional education is needed.
For example, if many referrals come from the ED but few convert to admission, the program may need a faster follow-up process or clearer criteria. If primary care referrals are low, the team may need more provider education and easier referral tools. If community presentations generate calls but not admissions, messaging may need to better explain who the program serves and how participation works.
Keep the Message Consistent
Every outreach effort should reinforce a simple message: senior IOP helps older adults who are struggling emotionally, socially, or functionally receive structured support while remaining in the community. The program is not only a behavioral health service; it is a hospital resource, a discharge support, a community partner, and a bridge for older adults who need more than routine outpatient care but do not require inpatient psychiatric hospitalization.
In small rural locations, successful recruitment grows from trust, responsiveness, and collaboration. By educating hospital departments first, simplifying referral pathways, partnering with community organizations, and aligning with broader hospital goals, senior behavioral health IOPs can expand access to care and become an essential part of the rural health system.
