Jobs at Spero Institute

Spero is a social enterprise offering a solution to the US mental health crisis. The 2 most common reasons people do not seek mental healthcare are cost and distance. This is because mental health claims are denied 2x as often by insurance companies than physical health claims, and 160 million Americans live in classified as mental healthcare shortage areas. While companies like BetterHelp and TalkSpace have made mental healthcare accessible through telemedicine these companies only offer outpatient(OP) care (therapy 1-2x a week and med management). But, this often isn't enough support for people dealing with co-occuring or serious mental illnesses (SMIs). Patients with SMIs such as bipolar disorder, severe major depressive disorder (MDD), schizophrenia, and borderline personality disorder (BPD) represent about 90% of patients admitted into inpatient (IP) facilities, and about 50% of these patients are readmitted into IP care within 1 year. This makes care for people with SMI very expensive, but these readmission rates can be significantly reduced with transitional care like intensive outpatient (IOP) care which is 3 hours 3-5 days a week. IOPs offer patients more support than OP care while keeping them in their normal environment and allowing them to maintain their routine. There has also been a shift in the medical industry from fee-for-service (FFS), which is paying per visit or procedure, to value based care(VBC). VBC means insurance pays per patient outcome, so they pay per patient who is treated to result rather than quantity of services. This is to motivate clinicians to administer more effective care, reduce healthcare costs, and reward lower relapse rates. The mental health industry is behind physical health on this but VBC is growing in popularity. But clinics must collect tons of data to prove they offer above average outcomes and to negotiate performance metrics with insurance to get VBC contracts, and most clinics do not have the ability to do this.