Wright State Physicians Family Medicine adds behavioral health clinician to staff

DAYTON, OHIO—Joy Forcier, LISW, has joined Wright State Physicians Family Medicine as the behavioral health clinician for the practice. Forcier assists the primary care physicians and nurse practitioners with patients who may have serious psychosocial issues that interfere with the quality of their health and adherence to their treatment plans.
Through an integrated health approach, Forcier and a team of medical professionals work together to provide both medical and behavioral health services in one convenient location at the Wright State Physicians Health Center on the campus of Wright State University (725 University Blvd.). As a patient-centered medical home (PCMH), Wright State Physicians Family Medicine is committed to providing a patient-centered, team-based approach that is focused on the patients’ overall well-being.
Forcier, a licensed independent social worker who is originally from the Miami Valley, trained and practiced in Boston, Mass., for many years before returning to the Dayton area. She worked for 21 years on the inpatient psychiatry unit at the Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital as a senior clinical social work supervisor. She also has held social work positions on psychiatry units in both private and state-affiliated hospitals. She has experience seeing psychotherapy patients in community mental health and private practice settings. She earned her M.S.W. degree from Simmons College School for Social Work in Boston, Mass., an M.A. in English from Miami University and a B.A. in English from the University of Cincinnati.
Forcier has already made a difference at Wright State Physicians Family Medicine. From patients experiencing depression to patients experiencing chronic anxiety, she has helped each person get the treatment and resources needed. She has worked with women stressed from work and the responsibilities of taking care of children and aging parents; diabetic patients who need help implementing a new diet plan; and patients struggling to adhere to their treatment plan to lose weight or stop smoking.
“Behavioral health is immediate,” said Forcier, who is on call throughout the day to assist the physicians and nurse practitioners. “Patients don’t have to wait for an additional appointment or go to another provider.”
She consults with the physician or nurse practitioner and listens to the patient’s story. “It’s the human connection that makes a difference,” said Forcier, who also teaches a course on child and family policy in Wright State University’s Master of Arts in Social Work program. “I can sit with the patient and explore what is difficult about the goals or steps needed to adhere to the treatment plan.”
She also helps identify patients who can benefit from the services of the practice’s community health worker, who can link the patients to additional health and social services.
“Joy brings a whole new dimension to Wright State Physicians Family Medicine,” said Therese Zink, M.D., M.P.H., a physician with Wright State Physicians Family Medicine and chair of the Department of Family Medicine at the Boonshoft School of Medicine. “As a behavioral health clinician, Joy helps improve our patients’ access to appropriate care.”