Similar Barriers to Telehealth Reported Among Mental Healthcare Providers

Mental healthcare providers report similar barriers to telehealth mental services, and overcoming these barriers is imperative to continue providing high-quality service to patients, according to a systematic review published in Current Opinion in Psychiatry.

“The current situation provides a unique opportunity to improve the delivery of mental healthcare and expand the scope of individuals who can be reached by mental health professionals. There is a growing body of literature in which psychiatrists and other mental health professionals are sharing their experiences with [telemental health] TMH and providing feasible solutions to common barriers,” researchers wrote in the review.

Researchers conducted a systematic search following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines for articles and reviews on PubMed, GoogleScholar, Web of Science, and PsychInfo from database inception through August 2020. The 9 articles included in the study were based on empirical evidence, assessed the barriers and/or the benefits of telemental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, and evaluated the means for overcoming the barriers.

Common barriers to the delivery of telemental health services include privacy, safety and confidentiality, therapeutic delivery and patient-provider relationships, and a loss of sense of community, according to the study.

Clinicians Should Set Realistic Expectations for Telehealth Treatment

To overcome safety and confidentiality barriers, patients should review and sign an informed consent checklist for telehealth services. Sound machines can also help prevent other individuals in the home from overhearing sessions, researchers suggest.

Telephone sessions can help when video is not an option but make it difficult to maintain therapeutic alliance and feels less personal. Clinicians should receive proper training to learn the necessary modifications for telehealth services. Also, because telephone sessions are the preferred method among patients of lower socioeconomic status, insurance companies should extend coverage to telephone visits, particularly throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers suggest.

Affordable online group therapy sessions can alleviate the loss of a sense of community. Clinicians also report the feeling of loss. Researchers strongly encourage implementing web-based secure collaborative workspaces, video conference ‘lunchrooms,’ and colleagues actively sharing self-care tips.

“It is important to keep in mind that the suggestions made in this review are not ‘one size fits all.’ Many solutions that work for some patient populations may not benefit others,” researchers wrote.

“The transition to TMH has revealed many benefits to this form of mental healthcare delivery, and even once face-to-face interactions can resume, mental health providers should consider maintaining the option of virtual care for patients.”

—Meagan Thistle

Reference

Siegel A, Zuo Y, Moghaddamcharkari N, McIntyre RS, Rosenblat JD. Barriers, benefits and interventions for improving the delivery of telemental health services during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic: a systematic review. Curr Opin Psychiatry. 2021;34(4):434-443.