Fitting Telemental Health into Your Practice

So, now you know what telehealth, and more specifically, telemental health, is. The question now is, how can you use it in your practice?

The awesome thing about telemental health is that it can be utilized in any number of ways in your practice. Research supports the use of telemental health with many client populations, issues and modalities.

One caveat before we talk about ways you can use this service:

Not every client will be appropriate for telemental health services. You want to be sure that you have clear criteria and complete a thorough screening/assessment before offering the service. This step is in keeping with your clinical and ethical responsibilities as well as determining the best fit for the client and for you.

Services

Here comes the exciting part! Let’s talk about the ways you can add telemental health to your practice. Some of these services may surprise you.

Telemental health has been shown to be a highly effective method of service delivery for many types of clients:

• Individual Therapy
• Couples Therapy
• Family Therapy
• EAP Services
• Clinical Supervision (will vary by your licensing board’s requirements)  

While not considered therapy, coaching services are another increasingly common online service which may compliment a therapy practice:

• Personal Coaching
• Executive Coaching

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Integrating Telemental Health Services

There are a number of ways to offer these services in your practice:

• You may consider offering this service to established clients with whom you already have a good therapeutic alliance.

• You may choose to offer an online option for new clients.
• You may choose to offer some combination of online and in-office services.

More and more, telemental health is becoming an accepted and poplar alternative to in-office services. You may find clients requesting it more frequently, especially those who are highly mobile, tech savvy or find it difficult to get to your office consistently.

Even some insurance and EAP companies are starting to recognize the efficacy of telemental health and may cover certain types of telemental health services. When verifying benefits, be sure to ask whether telemental health services are covered so that you know whether this service is an option for your client.

As you look at the list of services, you might be wondering about determining the types of clients who you might consider for telemental health. There has been some debate as to whether telemental health is appropriate for use with higher risk clients such as those with a history of self-harm or trauma such as PTSD. Research from the U.S. Veterans Administration has found that telemental health services can be an effective intervention for clients with issues such as PTSD and mood disorders.