How Georgia's HIN is transforming behavioral healthcare delivery

Mental health is not solely affected by the mind. Physical health certainly has a big impact. As do social determinants of health, such as employment, housing, the support of family and friends, and much more.

The Georgia Health Information Network, which serves 11 million residents, is taking all of these factors into consideration in its attempt to transform how behavioral health is delivered. GaHIN has linked hospitals, social services and community service boards into a single interoperability framework – the Social Care Integration Initiative, working with the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities.

Whole-person care

Denise Hines, executive director of GaHIN, will detail this state effort at the upcoming 2026 HIMSS Global Health Conference & Exhibition in a session titled "Connecting Behavioral Health and Whole-Person Care in Georgia." Hines has more than 30 years of healthcare experience in a variety of settings, including health systems, physician offices, home health, technology vendors, consulting, state government and revenue management.

"Behavioral health does not live in a vacuum, and the systems that support it cannot either," Hines explained. "This session focuses on how Georgia is connecting behavioral health with physical health and social services through statewide interoperability so care reflects the whole reality of people's lives. We will walk through the changes that occur when data, responsibility and coordination are shared across organizations rather than locked in silos.

"This focus matters right now because fragmentation is no longer sustainable," she continued. "HIMSS26 attendees are navigating rising behavioral health needs, workforce strain and pressure to deliver better outcomes with incomplete information. This session will show how a statewide approach can turn whole-person care from a goal into an operational, actionable practice."

Hines will dig into Georgia's Social Care Integration Initiative, which moves behavioral health coordination beyond referrals and into follow-through.

Shared visibility

"Instead of sending someone from one system to another and hoping for the best, this model creates shared visibility across behavioral health, medical care, housing and social services so providers can see what happened next and respond when it did not," she said.

"I will also discuss how shared data exchange pathways bring behavioral health and social context into everyday workflows," she continued. "The focus is not on new tools for their own sake. It is about ensuring the correct information is available when decisions are made so care teams can respond to the whole person, not just the encounter."

One clear takeaway from the session will be that integration starts with alignment, not technology, she added.

Progress via shared outcomes

"In Georgia, progress came from bringing agencies, providers and partners together around shared outcomes and building trust, governance and accountability to support them," Hines said. "The session breaks down how that alignment happened and why it mattered.

"When attendees return to their organizations, they can apply this immediately by treating behavioral health integration as a systems effort rather than a side initiative," she concluded. "The Georgia experience offers a practical path for moving from disconnected handoffs to coordinated care that holds together when needs are highest."

Denise Hines' session, "Connecting Behavioral Health and Whole-Person Care in Georgia," is scheduled for Tuesday, March 10, from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., in Palazzo I/Level 5 at HIMSS26 in Las Vegas.