Which of the following is a correct statement about the Collaborative Care Model?

• A. Random assignment
• B. Measurement of symptom-related outcomes
• C. Clinician intuition alone
• D. Patient satisfaction surveys only

Answer: (B)

Measurement-based care with regular symptom tracking is at the heart of the Collaborative Care Model. In this approach, patients are assessed over time using standardized tools that quantify their symptom levels, and those results directly guide treatment decisions. A care manager monitors these outcomes, shares them with a supervising psychiatric consultant, and the primary care clinician adjusts medications, therapy, or other interventions based on what the scores show. This creates a responsive, data-driven loop that keeps treatment aligned with how the patient is actually doing.

For example, depression care often uses a standardized scale like the PHQ-9 at regular intervals. If scores don’t improve as expected, the team can escalate to a different medication, add psychotherapy, or modify the plan promptly, rather than relying on intuition alone or waiting for overt clinical changes.

Random assignment is a research method, not a clinical workflow. Clinician intuition alone does not capture objective changes in symptoms and often misses subtle improvements or deteriorations. Patient satisfaction surveys are valuable but insufficient by themselves because they don’t reliably reflect symptom burden or treatment response, which are essential for adjusting care.