Mental Health Care Delivered Remotely: Advantages, Confidentiality Concerns, and Potential Hazards
In recent years, the landscape of mental health care has undergone a significant transformation, with the rise of telemental health services. This innovative approach to delivering mental health services utilises telecommunications or videoconferencing technology, making it possible for individuals to receive support from the comfort of their own homes.
The shift towards telemental health has been facilitated by key policy changes that prioritise parity in reimbursement, expand billing codes, and encourage interprofessional consultations. For instance, behavioural health care professionals and facilities are now reimbursed for telehealth services at the same rate and manner as in-person services, ensuring equal payment for virtual care. States may also reimburse telehealth behavioural health services without submitting separate State Plan Amendments (SPA) when reimbursing telehealth services at parity with face-to-face rates. However, states must submit reimbursement SPAs if payment structures differ from in-person care.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services recommend using HIPAA-compliant video platforms for telemental health services, and many states mandate informed consent specific to telehealth services. Patients must receive an in-person mental health visit within 6 months prior to telehealth and at least annually during ongoing telehealth treatment, unless risks justify otherwise and are documented.
The benefits of telemental health services are manifold. They enable clinicians to reach more patients, including those living in rural areas, working irregular hours, and homebound patients. The pandemic has further highlighted the importance of this service, with telemental health services providing for a 10 to 20 percent increase in the treatment of conditions such as depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder between January and December 2020.
The convenience and accessibility of telemental health services have resonated with many. Nearly 60 percent of adults reported they were open to using telemental health services, and 43 percent said they would continue using those services after the pandemic ended, according to a 2021 American Psychiatric Association survey. Moreover, more than half of patients (57 percent) prefer using telehealth for regular mental health visits, according to a recent J.D. Power survey.
Implementing a solid telemental health program requires digital literacy, a secure internet connection, and a video communication tool. Working with an office administrative staff, including IT, is crucial to ensure adequate bandwidth and high-quality audio and video for telemental health services. Shannon Houser, a professor in the Department of Health Services Administration at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, emphasises the importance of this collaboration.
Kate Chard, an Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati, underscores the potential of telemental health services to expand access to mental health care. By reducing no-show rates and benefiting providers from a fiscal standpoint, telemental health services offer a sustainable solution to the ongoing challenge of mental health care accessibility.
As permanent policy changes allow reimbursements for telemental and telebehavioral healthcare, providers are incentivised to implement the necessary technologies and security measures. This shift towards telemental health not only promises to revolutionise the delivery of mental health services but also to make mental health care more accessible and inclusive for all.
The recent reimbursement parity for telemental health services, facilitated by key policy changes, has led to an increase in the use of technology for mental health care delivery. This development, which includes the expansion of telehealth services for health-and-wellness and mental-health, is set to make mental health care more accessible and inclusive for a broader population.
As more individuals become comfortable with the convenience and accessibility of telemental health services, the adoption of these digital platforms is projected to grow significantly, further transforming the landscape of health-and-wellness and mental-health care.
