Richard Veith, MD and colleagues in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences with support from faculty in Anesthesiology & Pain Medicine and in UW Medicine are conducting a four-year telehealth project funded by the HRSA Office for Advancing Telehealth to address critical shortages in mental health care and pain management in rural, underserved sites in Washington State. The lack of mental health services leads to under-treatment, higher rates of suicide, increased use of emergency services, and hospitalizations. Compounding the problems related to inadequate access to mental health care, primary care providers (PCPs) in rural areas report having inadequate skills to manage mental health problems, especially serious psychiatric disorders and conditions aggravated by cooccurring substance abuse.