The Care Collaborative at CU Anschutz Launches Innovative Effort to Improve Psychiatric Care for Older Adults in Rural Colorado
Jan 6, 2026
The Care Collaborative and the Department of Psychiatry’s EASY Consultation Program at CU Anschutz are partnering to launch a new ECHO series, Psychiatry Consultation for Adults in Every Day Primary Care, aimed at expanding access to behavioral health care for adult and geriatric populations in Colorado, particularly those living in rural and frontier communities where common behavioral disorders often go undiagnosed.
This innovative five-week series employs the ECHO model to train participating primary care providers on two critical skills: how to submit an effective eConsult and when to engage a campus-based psychiatry access program for additional clinical guidance. An eConsult is an electronic communication between a primary care provider and a specialist that makes it easier and more affordable for patients to receive timely, expert-informed care close to home.
The EASY Consultation Program plays a central role in expanding access to psychiatric care for adults and geriatric patients by offering primary care providers rapid, expert guidance on complex behavioral health cases. Through EASY, providers can consult directly with psychiatric specialists who help them assess symptoms, adjust treatment plans, and determine when higher-level care is needed, often without requiring patients to travel long distances for specialty appointments. By contributing to content development for the new ECHO series, the EASY team is equipping clinicians with practical strategies for identifying and managing behavioral health conditions in adults and geriatric patients, while also reinforcing when to use consultation services to ensure timely, evidence-based care.
The new strategy responds to Colorado’s growing need for psychiatric services, especially in rural and frontier counties where limited access contributes to delayed treatment and poorer outcomes. Psychiatry Consultation for Adults in Every Day Primary Care will help primary care providers strengthen their ability to identify and manage common behavioral health conditions in adults and geriatric patients, while also showing how eConsults can deliver rapid, case-specific support from psychiatric specialists.
This ECHO serves as a double whammy for The Care Collaborative’s efforts to improve health equity in Colorado.Through ECHO, providers gain practical skills to better screen and manage psychiatric disorders, and through eConsults they get ongoing, specialist-informed guidance no matter where they practice.
By combining ECHO’s “all teach, all learn” education model with the clinical expertise available through psychiatry eConsults, The Care Collaborative also aims to increase statewide use of eConsults to strengthen continuity of care for adults and geriatric patients. The approach is especially valuable for rural and frontier clinics, where primary care providers often serve as the sole access point for behavioral health services.
This coordinated effort reflects The Care Collaborative’s mission to make expertise accessible and build the capability of Colorado’s healthcare workforce. As more providers participate in both ECHO and eConsults, the potential grows to improve outcomes for older Coloradans who depend on their local clinicians for comprehensive, connected care.
This innovative five-week series employs the ECHO model to train participating primary care providers on two critical skills: how to submit an effective eConsult and when to engage a campus-based psychiatry access program for additional clinical guidance. An eConsult is an electronic communication between a primary care provider and a specialist that makes it easier and more affordable for patients to receive timely, expert-informed care close to home.
The EASY Consultation Program plays a central role in expanding access to psychiatric care for adults and geriatric patients by offering primary care providers rapid, expert guidance on complex behavioral health cases. Through EASY, providers can consult directly with psychiatric specialists who help them assess symptoms, adjust treatment plans, and determine when higher-level care is needed, often without requiring patients to travel long distances for specialty appointments. By contributing to content development for the new ECHO series, the EASY team is equipping clinicians with practical strategies for identifying and managing behavioral health conditions in adults and geriatric patients, while also reinforcing when to use consultation services to ensure timely, evidence-based care.
The new strategy responds to Colorado’s growing need for psychiatric services, especially in rural and frontier counties where limited access contributes to delayed treatment and poorer outcomes. Psychiatry Consultation for Adults in Every Day Primary Care will help primary care providers strengthen their ability to identify and manage common behavioral health conditions in adults and geriatric patients, while also showing how eConsults can deliver rapid, case-specific support from psychiatric specialists.
This ECHO serves as a double whammy for The Care Collaborative’s efforts to improve health equity in Colorado.Through ECHO, providers gain practical skills to better screen and manage psychiatric disorders, and through eConsults they get ongoing, specialist-informed guidance no matter where they practice.
By combining ECHO’s “all teach, all learn” education model with the clinical expertise available through psychiatry eConsults, The Care Collaborative also aims to increase statewide use of eConsults to strengthen continuity of care for adults and geriatric patients. The approach is especially valuable for rural and frontier clinics, where primary care providers often serve as the sole access point for behavioral health services.
This coordinated effort reflects The Care Collaborative’s mission to make expertise accessible and build the capability of Colorado’s healthcare workforce. As more providers participate in both ECHO and eConsults, the potential grows to improve outcomes for older Coloradans who depend on their local clinicians for comprehensive, connected care.