For patients in behavioral health treatment, some of the most vulnerable moments come when care moves from one setting to the next. Michael McClam, MD, has seen those handoffs from nearly every angle, having held leadership roles across inpatient, residential, admissions and youth services at the Houston-based Menninger Clinic.
Now, after being named the organization’s chief medical officer Sept. 2, he wants transitions to feel less like a handoff and more like one continuous treatment journey.
Dr. McClam told Becker’s his top priorities, how he measures quality and safety, and the changes he expects to reshape psychiatric care over the next three to five years.
Editor’s note: Responses have been lightly edited for clarity and length.
Question: As you step into the chief medical officer role, what are the top priorities you want to tackle first, and where do you see the greatest opportunity to strengthen psychiatric care at Menninger?
Dr. Michael McClam: My first priority is to build on the clinical strengths and programs that are already in place at Menninger while continuing to look for opportunities to improve how we deliver care. That includes strengthening collaboration across the full care team — physicians, nurses, therapists, social workers and other clinicians — so that treatment is coordinated around the patient rather than individual disciplines.
I also want to ensure that our clinical decisions remain grounded in evidence while being responsive to the increasingly complex needs of patients seeking behavioral healthcare. One of the opportunities I see for Menninger is to continue distinguishing ourselves through the depth and integration of our clinical care, particularly for patients with complex or treatment-resistant conditions.
Q: Quality, safety and effectiveness are central to your new role. What does meaningful improvement in those areas look like in behavioral healthcare, and what measures matter most to you?
MM: In behavioral healthcare, quality and effectiveness ultimately come down to whether patients are getting better and whether they are better equipped to sustain that progress after treatment. That means looking beyond what happens during a patient’s stay and considering whether we are helping patients build the skills, stability and support they need to continue making progress.
Safety is also broader than preventing physical harm. It includes the physical and psychological safety of both patients and staff, as well as having systems in place that allow clinicians to identify and respond to risk early.
Meaningful improvement also requires us to use data thoughtfully — not simply to measure performance, but to identify where care can be improved and then determine whether those changes are actually making a difference for patients.
Q: You’ve held leadership roles across inpatient, residential, admissions and youth services at Menninger. What have those different parts of the care continuum taught you about where behavioral health organizations still have gaps — particularly when patients transition between levels of care?
MM: Working across different levels of care has given me a firsthand view of how important continuity is to successful treatment. Transitions can be particularly vulnerable moments for patients. Information, treatment goals and clinical recommendations need to follow the patient from one setting to the next so that each new provider understands where the patient has been and where treatment needs to go.
I also think the admissions process is an important opportunity to establish the right treatment plan from the beginning, including making sure we understand the level of care a patient needs.
Across behavioral health more broadly, there is an opportunity to make transitions feel less like a handoff between organizations or levels of care and more like a continuation of one treatment journey. My experience in youth services has reinforced that same principle, while also highlighting the importance of intervening early and recognizing that young people have different developmental and family needs that need to be part of their care.
Q: Looking ahead three to five years, what change in psychiatric care do you think will have the biggest impact on how organizations like Menninger operate and how patients experience treatment?
MM: I think the increasing complexity of patients’ needs will require behavioral health organizations to think differently about how specialized care is delivered and coordinated. At the same time, greater use of data and technology has the potential to help clinicians identify patterns, personalize treatment and better understand outcomes.
I see opportunities for innovations such as AI to support that work, specifically with documentation or assisting with literature searches to ensure we’re up to date with the latest evidence-based treatment. I do think it is important that technology remains a complement to clinical care rather than a replacement for it. The therapeutic relationship will remain central to behavioral health treatment.
Access and continuity will also continue to be important challenges as demand for behavioral healthcare grows. For organizations like Menninger, the opportunity is to combine innovation with the depth of clinical expertise and human connection that patients need, particularly those with more complex conditions.
At the Becker's Fall Behavioral Health Summit, taking place November 4–5 in Chicago, behavioral health leaders and executives will explore strategies for expanding access to care, integrating services, addressing workforce challenges and leveraging innovation to improve outcomes across the behavioral health continuum. Apply for complimentary registration now.
