Transforming Cognitive Care Across the Pacific Northwest
Frontier Psychiatry provides behavioral health services to patients across Montana, Alaska, Idaho, and Wyoming—four states defined by vast distances and limited access to specialized care. Traditional paper-based testing made it difficult to conduct timely, accurate cognitive assessments and further complicated care delivery in these underserved areas.
To address these barriers, Frontier Psychiatry partnered with BrainCheck, a digital cognitive assessment and care platform. The goal: modernize their cognitive assessment process, making it more accessible, efficient, and scalable across their network. With direct integration into Athenahealth, BrainCheck enabled clinicians to seamlessly capture, review, and document cognitive results without disrupting existing workflows.
Revolutionizing Cognitive Care with Remote At-Home Assessments
Using BrainCheck, patients can now complete cognitive assessments from their own devices—saving travel time and increasing convenience. For clinician-administered testing, Frontier uses BrainCheck’s remote monitoring tools to ensure accurate, distraction-free sessions. Automated text and email notifications simplify patient engagement and drive higher completion rates.
The ability to combine screening, assessment, and care planning in a single digital workflow has been transformative.
“Compared to the time-consuming and error-prone process of using paper assessments, BrainCheck has made our workflow faster, more accurate, and much more efficient,” said Dr. Nathan Bell, MD, Chief Medical Officer at Frontier Psychiatry. “It’s deeply integrated into our Athena system, which makes it simple to scale and sustain.”
Driving Change: Advancing Patient Care
Since implementing BrainCheck, Frontier Psychiatry has seen remarkable growth in both reach and efficiency. Over a 12-month period, clinicians completed 746 self-administered Screens and 673 remote Assessments, along with 26 reimbursable care plans—yielding an estimated $91,000 in total reimbursements and a 199% return on investment.
“BrainCheck’s scalability has not only allowed us to test more patients across multiple states, but has also integrated seamlessly into our EHR and generated significant reimbursement revenue,” said Dr. Bell. “We love the tool—it’s easy to use, helps us identify early signs of impairment, and has scaled to a volume we couldn’t have imagined.”
Empowering Patients and Personalizing Care
Patients who once faced barriers like long travel distances or scheduling challenges can now complete assessments remotely, at their own pace, and with minimal assistance. This flexibility has increased engagement and accessibility, particularly among older adults.
“The level of detail and accuracy in the cognitive data we collect through BrainCheck allows us to design truly personalized care plans for our patients,” said Dr. Priyanki Pareek, MD, who leads cognitive care planning within Frontier's clinical team. “It gives us the insight we need to guide next steps and support early detection.”
By combining clinical precision with digital convenience, Frontier Psychiatry continues to advance its mission of delivering high-quality, accessible cognitive care to patients across the rural Northwest.
