Telehealth refers to the technology-enhanced health care framework that includes services such as virtual visits, remote patient monitoring, and mobile health care. Telehealth provides comparable health outcomes when compared with traditional methods of health care delivery without compromising the patient-physician relationship, and it also has been shown to enhance patient satisfaction and improve patient engagement.
Telehealth-based services in community mental health settings are on the rise and growth is expected to continue. A growing variety of telehealth technologies are being used to support the management of mental health cases. Specific technology types have been found to be effective for some outcomes (e.g., telephone and remote medication monitoring for adherence to treatment), while other types of telehealth technologies (e.g., delivery of patient education using computers) had no benefit over traditional nurse-based methods and were less acceptable to patients (Department of Health 2017).
Using technology to deliver health care has several advantages, including cost savings, convenience, and the ability to provide care to people with mobility limitations, or those in rural areas who do not have access to a local doctor or clinic. Telehealth has become even more essential during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic. Fears of spreading and getting infected with the virus during in-person medical visits have led to a greater interest in, and use of, technology to provide and receive health care (Park J, Erikson C, Han X, Iyer P. 2018).
Negative clinician attitudes toward telehealth have been identified as a key barrier to overall telehealth acceptance and implementation. Clinicians identified telehealth-related concerns about their ability to establish therapeutic alliance, software and equipment usability, associated costs, whether telehealth-delivered services were equivalent to face-to-face treatment, and HIPAA rules.
It is not possible to do every type of visit remotely. Patients have to go into the office for things like imaging tests and blood work, as well as for diagnoses that require a more hands-on approach. The security of personal health data transmitted electronically is a concern. While insurance companies are increasingly covering the cost of telehealth visits during the COVID-19 pandemic, some services may not be fully covered, leading to out-of-pocket costs (Demeke HB, Pao LZ, Clark H, et al. 2020).
Demeke HB, Pao LZ, Clark H, et al. Telehealth practice among health centers during the COVID-19 pandemic—United States, July 11–17, 2020. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2020;69:1902–5. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6950a4
Department of Health 2017, Telehealth psychological services for people in rural areas, http://www.health.gov.au/internet/main/publishing.nsf/Content/mental-ba-telehealth
Park J, Erikson C, Han X, Iyer P. Are state telehealth policies associated with the use of telehealth services among underserved populations? Health Aff (Millwood) 2018;37:2060–8. https://doi.org/10.1377/hlthaff.2018.05101external icon
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