Telehealth including teletherapy, telepsychology and telepsychiatry are new forms of health care and often serve as a component of a complete treatment care plan; it offers patients the opportunity to receive professional therapeutic assistance, advice over the phone, or guidance over a video session in an emergency when a face-to-face meeting is not available or possible.
People have many responsibilities in their personal, social, home and professional lives; time, convenience and price are important considerations for people in most aspects of life. Telehealth is an affordable, convenient and easy-to-use service that can be utilized from the comfort of your home or any location of your choice. It can be used to help treat depression, anxiety, stress, schizophrenia, diabetes management, health promotion for weight loss, smoking cessation, and substance abuse cessation.
Telehealth, or e-therapy, is simply another way of communicating and relating that can be just as powerful and effective as face-to-face interaction. In compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) standards, telehealth practices are evolving and have begun to gain prominence as a new way of relating to and treating patients.
Why Choose Telehealth Over Traditional Health Care Services
There are many reasons why a person, especially a patient detoxing from substance abuse and dependency, might prefer or even require telehealth services over traditional in-person care. Here is a list of situations where traditional care might not be able to provide the quality of care that telehealth can offer:
- Those with inflexible work hours
- Those with a physical disability or injury that limits their mobility
- Those with a mental disability that might limit their mobility
- Those with responsibilities that prevent you from leaving home often
- Inclement weather or natural disasters
- Those who cannot travel due to commuting issues
- Those who live in a rural or remote area with limited health services
- Those on a budget
How Teletherapy Works
A healthcare professional will conduct the session remotely through a telephone or online through a HIPAA compliant video conferencing software similar to Skype with a headset to ensure privacy from a private and secure location. A telehealth session will typically last from 40 to 60 minutes and require that the patient has a computer with video and audio capability so that the patient and healthcare professional can see and hear each other. Telehealth sessions, such as teletherapy and telepsychology, are generally conducted in the same manner, and they progress nearly the same way as a traditional face-to-face session would. Any handouts or materials will be provided to you over a secure connection.
Before engaging in telehealth, a patient will undergo an initial assessment to determine whether telehealth is appropriate for each specific case and circumstance. Certain types of cases or diagnoses are not well suited for online therapy and may require more dynamic and intensive services, such as high-risk cases (e.g. someone who is at risk for self-harm or has suicidal ideation). Other serious factors include ensuring to provide other resources such as emergency contact information or services to the usually out-of-state or distant patient in case of a crisis, as well as ensuring that the patient’s privacy and confidentiality are adequately protected with a HIPAA compliant encryption system for all electronic transmissions and records.
Laws and Confidentiality
Telehealth laws are relatively new and change often as telehealth becomes more prominent and preferable to many people with a variety of physical and mental health problems, including those detoxing in treatment and recovering from drugs and alcohol abuse and dependence. Health-care providers, as well as patients, are advised to keep up to date with your state legislature’s website for the latest state telehealth laws and regulations. Teletherapy services are fully HIPAA compliant and confidential, no video sessions are recorded, archived or shared with anyone and your therapist will meet with you in a secure location. Insurance has yet to cover teletherapy, especially for those with independent practices that are not aligned with a major health provider.
In most states, health-care providers are required to be licensed both in their own state as well as in their clients’ states. However, many states allow out-of-state-licensed psychologists to provide telehealth services for a short period of time — ranging from 10 to 30 days in a calendar year — under specified conditions with a guest license. Specific conditions include obtaining documentation and medical records with the established diagnosis or diagnoses, performing a mental and physical examination, diagnostic and laboratory testing as necessary — as well as discussing with the patient the diagnosis, evidence, the risks and benefits of various treatment options, and finally, providing appropriate follow-up care options for the patient in their state of residence that meets their specific requirements.
