American Association of Community Psychiatrists Position Statement: Putting Patients First by Improving Treatment Planning and Reducing Administrative and Clinical Burden of Treatment Plan Documentation

This paper represents a position statement of the American Association of Community Psychiatrists (AACP) regarding treatment plans. We regard treatment plans, a documentation requirement, in this position statement, as distinct from the process of treatment planning. The AACP is concerned that treatment plan documentation in its current state, creates unnecessary administrative burden for physicians, without evidence of benefit for patients, reducing direct patient contact time, thereby negatively impacting quality of care. In this position, we echo the statements made by the American College of Physicians in their position paper entitled “Putting Patients First by Reducing Administrative Tasks in Health Care”. We recommend a review of the treatment plan documentation requirement across the nation, engaging consumers, providers, regulatory agencies in all states, as well as national reimbursement and regulatory agencies, in order to promote the process of quality driven care and documentation.