Addressing the mental health needs of LGBTQ+ individuals: An integrated care approach.

INTRODUCTION

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) adults report notable mental health disparities, yet are highly underserved in mental health care. Integrated behavioral health (IBH) may address disparities, yet guidance on establishing such clinics for LGBTQ+ populations is limited.

METHOD: This conceptual article discusses the need for establishing IBH clinics and provides a case example of a clinic, including initial utilization data.

RESULTS

We highlight relevant theoretical frameworks that can be used to establish IBH clinics serving LGBTQ+ individuals and demonstrate application of these frameworks in our case example. Our IBH clinic data showed that 266 visits were completed in 2025 for LGBTQ+ adults, with 32 patients opting into short-term psychotherapy.

DISCUSSION: IBH clinics are essential for expanding mental health care access for LGBTQ+ individuals. Further research should focus on evaluating these models and identifying cost-effective interventions that can be used in integrated settings. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).