Benefits of Telemental Health
Expands Access
Telemental health puts mental health services within reach of men, women, and children who live in rural or remote areas where counselors may be scarce.
Saves Time
With clinical mental health counselors now serving clients over long distances through videoconferencing, travel time can involve just the seconds it takes to walk to one’s laptop. This innovative counseling model eliminates a client’s need for transportation, and any travel-related costs. Telemental health also can make it easier for patients to work appointments into their schedules without having to take time off from work.
Shortens Delays
Patients can wait an average of 25 days to see a mental health professional after making an appointment. Telemental health removes many of the barriers that lead to long waits to see providers. A patient in Miami no longer has to choose a counselor from a short list of practitioners within a comfortable driving distance or place her name on a waiting list. They may choose to work remotely with a professional in Orlando, 235 miles away.
Eases Stigma
In 1999, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. David Satcher identified the stigma around mental illness as the most persistent barrier to individuals seeking help and noted that this stigma is more pronounced in rural settings. For patients concerned about appearing publicly at a practitioner’s office, working with clinical mental health counselors from home via teleconferencing, or by phone, can ease anxieties and promote acceptance of treatment. Professionals, advocacy groups, and others continue their work to dispel this misplaced sense of embarrassment or shame about seeking mental health services, heeding Satcher’s plea to “confront the attitudes, fear, and misunderstanding that remain as barriers before us.”
Gets Results
Research continues to affirm the efficacy of telemental health services, with studies showing that videoconferencing is as effective as face-to-face treatments. Offering increased provider options and a multitude of convenient technological vehicles, telemental health is a growing and effective alternative for those delivering and receiving mental health services.
