The digital revolution has brought disruption in every field and mental healthcare is no exception. COVID-19 has provided us with an opportunity to improve the access to healthcare services.
It was reported that 45% of U.S. adults in their households had deferred healthcare services due to the coronavirus pandemic. In order to circumvent this obstacle, alternative methods must be explored, especially as patients are unable to see their psychiatrists in person.
Through advanced healthcare platform development technologies, telepsychiatry bridges the gap between mental health providers and patients who need their services. It helps in eliminating previous barriers of large distances, lack of transportation, appointment issues, and time restrictions. Therefore, the need to adapt and expand telepsychiatry care has tremendously increased across the world due to its convenience and efficiency.
In this article, we will thoroughly discuss telepsychiatry along with its benefits and challenges.
Telepsychiatry is an approach for psychiatric assessment and treatment through telecommunication technology, like video conferencing. It involves activities such as diagnosis, e-therapy, education, transfer of medical data, etc. This has been used as an effective solution to address the problem of limited mental health services for clinics and hospitals in remote areas or regions underserved by psychiatrists.
According to the CDC report, there was a 50% increase in overall telehealth visits during the first 3 months of 2020. Since then, the usage of telepsychiatry to address mental health issues has also been expedited, mainly due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
There are different types of telepsychiatry. Some of these include:
In-home telepsychiatry- This involves offering psychiatric services and mental health care for those at home, via video chat or call. It only requires a computer, a webcam, and an Internet connection on both patients' and physicians' ends.
Crisis telepsychiatry- This involves immediate service when it comes to managing a mental health crisis. This might involve patients in need of immediate care, those who are suicidal, violent, depressed, manic, or acutely anxious patients.
Forensic telepsychiatry- This involves providing mental healthcare services for those in correctional facilities or prisons. This type of platform is used for performing regular psychiatric care to inmates in a safe manner.
Routine telepsychiatry- This involves mental healthcare facilities that want to create awareness and increase care capacity to outsource their services. This could be beneficial for people in rural areas who cannot access on-site psychiatric services due to a lack of professionals.
As such, telepsychiatry offers the potential to improve access to mental health care, reduce waiting times, and lower costs and hospitalizations for patients. However, it is crucial to note that benefits are not limited to patients, but also mental healthcare specialists. With greater flexibility in scheduling appointments, fewer administrative tasks, and reduced practice overhead costs, it helps reduce the burden and the risk of physician burnout.
One out of every six people experiences some type of common mental health problem, with major depression, speculated as a significant contributor to the burden and risk of suicides.
In addition to the challenges introduced by COVID-19, there are still other factors that affect the accessibility of mental healthcare services. It was found that 5.8 million people in the United States delayed medical care because of a lack of transportation.
Many segments of the world’s population still face hurdles while seeking to professional care. These may include-
1. Unavailability of local psychiatrists or mental healthcare specialists;
2. Limited government resources to fund mental health education, outreach psychiatric programs, and mental initiatives;
3. A lack of awareness around treatment options, scared of social stigma, concerns around costs, and many more.
This is where telepsychiatry comes in, and provides an effective solution to all the aforementioned problems. With the ability to deliver high-quality professional care remotely for psychiatric issues, telepsychiatry offers a significant advantage for struggling mental health systems around the world.
One of the studies indicated that most subjects suggested they feel more comfortable at home, can save time and money on transportation, are able to express themselves more openly, and/or request less time off work, hence, are most likely to consider using telepsychiatry in the future.
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Besides alleviating patients' mental health needs, telepsychiatry can also be convenient and affordable. It can help both patients and mental healthcare providers in various ways, including-
1. Provides access to psychiatric care in underserved areas(such as rural areas)
2. Helps integrate behavioral health and primary care, resulting in better health outcomes.
3. Ensure that ER visits are reduced
4. Medical care can be provided on-site at the patient's location.
5. Enhances the continuity and follow-up of care.
6. Makes it easier to attend appointments that are far away from work or childcare.
7. Ensures faster delivery of care.
8. Stigma barriers are reduced.
9. Reduces potential transportation barriers, such as long driving distances or a lack of transportation.
10. Help integrate behavioral health care and primary care, leading to better health outcomes.
11. Improve clinical workflow and increase practice efficiency
12. Reduce practice overhead
13. Flexibility of scheduling
14. Relieve physician burnout and increase well-being
Though telepsychiatry has enormous scope and has probably not yet reached its full potential, certain issues need to be addressed concerning this mode of service delivery. This is not a reflection of the ineffectiveness of telepsychiatry but rather a reflection of its underutilization. Despite the potential benefits of telepsychiatry, it is important to realize that no telehealth program can be developed overnight. There are challenges involved in adapting to this new method such as-
1. Telepsychiatry is only practicable for disorders and visits that cannot be dealt with virtually, which would be much more challenging.
2. Lack of technological literacy on both the physician and patient end.
3. The possible negative impacts of removing the in-person patient-doctor interaction that is often used to build rapport.
4. The cost of system installation and virtual care platforms is quite high.
5. Struggle to adapt novel practice models and technology.
6. Concerns with the security of patient medical data when patient-physician communications take place over the internet.
7. Possible issues in reimbursement and insurance claims.
8. Unreliability on physician licensing and credentialing issues.
Despite all these challenges, studies indicate that patients who utilize telepsychiatry services are less likely to be admitted to acute care facilities, have shorter stays, lower costs, and are more satisfied with their treatment.
Mental healthcare has been improved through the deployment of telepsychiatry services. In addition to providing positive patient outcomes, the virtual care platform brings positive changes to the daily workflow.
With the growing demand for telehealth services and the rapid expansion of connected devices, telepsychiatry will continue to evolve through technological advancements, clinical applications, and delivery care models. This is a field of untapped potential that needs to be further explored and expanded upon because of its high effectiveness. It offers an enticing combination of benefits to both patients and mental healthcare providers.
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