Gettysburg, Pennsylvania — 25% of behavioral health and social service organizations spend less than $25,000 per year on information technology. These are the findings of a new survey by OPEN MINDS, which is available in a new publication, Technology Applications In The Behavioral Health & Social Service Fields: The 2002 OPEN MINDS Survey Edition. The OPEN MINDS survey results also suggest that technology investments of behavioral health and social service organizations account for nearly 4% of their overall operating budget.

Other findings of the survey include:

• 98% of behavioral health and social service organizations have some access to the Internet. (Of the 2% of the organizations, which still have not taken advantage of the benefits of Internet use, 83% of them plan to go "on-line" within the next year.)
• 32% of organizations reported all employees as having Internet access, with only 2% reporting having no employees with Internet access
• 78% of organizations reported having a public website, with the lowest, 20%, being for private practice organizations.
• Only 59% of organizations have a public website that permits customers to make on-line inquiries.
• A quarter of organizations use external contractors for on-going content updates or maintenance of websites
• 17% of behavioral health and social service organizations currently use an application service provider (ASP) of some software application.
• 72% of organizations will use their own internal staff in selecting vendors and conducting contract negotiation to assist them in choosing the appropriate program management system.

In announcing the availability of this new publication, Monica E. Oss, OPEN MINDS President noted, “Behavioral health and social services industry executives require information for strategic technology planning to select appropriate technology, budget for technology investments, select vendors and staff and organize their IT function. In undertaking this survey, OPEN MINDS has provided that information; producing a publication that is the most complete source of benchmark information on current and planned uses and spending on information technology in the behavioral health and social service fields.”

To develop Technology Applications In The Behavioral Health & Social Service Fields: The 2002 OPEN MINDS Survey Edition, OPEN MINDS surveyed over 5,000 behavioral health and social service organizations. The report is the only publication to look at behavioral health and social service market segments, including the following categories:

• Children's services/juvenile justice providers
• MR/DD service providers
• Employee assistance/managed behavioral health organizations
• Community mental health centers
• Partial hospitalization/day treatment/psychosocial rehabilitation programs
• Private practice of behavioral health professionals
• Outpatient behavioral health treatment organizations
• Inpatient residential behavioral health programs
• Government authorities for behavioral health or social service

The complete report is available for $499. The survey book is also available on CD-ROM for $499, where the data is presented in a spreadsheet format. Order before December 29th and receive A Guide To Strategic Technology Planning: An OPEN MINDS Special Report (a $59 value) free.

For more information or to order a copy, contact the Marketing Coordinator, toll free at 877-350-6463, or visit the OPEN MINDS Web site at http://www.openminds.com.

OPEN MINDS is a behavioral health and social service industry research and management consulting firm. The company’s stock in trade is analyzing and disseminating information on the business, marketing, and financing aspects of behavioral health, child welfare, senior services, and human services. OPEN MINDS has three service divisions – information products, professional education, and research and management consultation services. Since its inception, OPEN MINDS has developed a wide array of products and services – periodicals and books, data sets and database, education programs, research, and consultation services.

For more information about OPEN MINDS, contact OPEN MINDS, 10 York Street, Suite 200,Gettysburg, Pennsylvania 17325-2301, 717-334-1329, fax: 717-334-0538, e-mail: openminds@openminds.com, web site: http://www.openminds.com.