The sharp rise in the availability of telemedicine benefits has opened up new opportunities for mental and behavioral health counseling, as well as challenges for healthcare providers, employers and employees.
Efforts to tackle the “mental health crisis”
“The COVID-19 pandemic has caused an unprecedented mental health crisis, along with an increase in cases of depression, substance abuse and suicide,” said Dennis Urbaniak, executive vice president of digital therapy at global pharmaceutical company Orexo. It states. “The ability to receive care regardless of geographic location or proximity is clearly appealing, especially when it comes to mental health care. Unfortunately, mental health care continues to be surrounded by stigma, especially at work.” Pointed out.
Employees in small cities who may not have sufficient local demand for a particular type of group get the support and resources they need by connecting with others who may literally be around the world. can do. Therefore, it is not surprising that there are more options for virtual mental health care.
Kevin Silva, Chief Human Resources Officer at Voya Financial, said that pre-pandemic employees already had telemedicine options available for acute physical care, which include primary care and mental health care. Said it was expanded to. “Voya’s telemedicine visits surged in 2020, but haven’t returned to pre-pandemic levels yet,” Silva said. “Many employees prefer the convenience of telemedicine [for physical and behavioral health visits] It is beneficial for employers because it is scheduled early and has little impact on productivity. “
Virtual care is also further automated by artificial intelligence, so the “doctors” with whom employees may interact may not be doctors at all. Wysa, an AI and human-led digital mental health app, provides counseling and support provided by both qualified mental health counselors and AI chatbots available 24/7 for employees and other users. To do. AI chatbots use AI-CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy) to help people overcome challenges and adapt to their own situations based on their reactions.
Zoom in on group therapy
As remote and hybrid work continues, many employees remain isolated and anxious. Opportunities to effectively get together to share concerns and participate in group treatment options are helpful.
Zoom, a popular app for hosting online business meetings, is currently being used by some mental health service providers as a virtual venue for behavioral group therapy or disease management support. For example, BrightView, Cyncinati’s addiction service treatment provider, promotes virtual group therapy through Zoom to “help provide a safe environment. [for patients] According to the organization’s website, you will be emotionally healed, understand your background, express your ideas, reflect on your experience, and connect with others engaged in support.
write in
Psychology todayDuring the pandemic, psychotherapist Sean Glover explained how he began using Zoom for a treatment group previously held in his New York City office. “I didn’t have much expectations,” he wrote. “I was convinced that the online therapy group would be a snooze fest, so I decided not to charge for the first zoom session …. I was wrong. From the first session, I could see the group members. I did. [were] I can’t get in touch. They were excited to meet each other. “
The Zoom Group offers more flexibility to busy patients, Glover said. Due to schedule conflicts, illness, childcare, and other priorities, group members “have to be absent from the session or leave the group. Now they call from home, office, or elsewhere. I will call you. ”
As the pandemic diminishes, Glover, like other therapists, will continue to offer zoom sessions for individual and group therapists, but some have expressed concern about the risk of hacking (see the privacy issue discussion below). ).
Effective care
Early evidence suggests that virtual care for mental health and behavioral health issues is effective. A 2021 mental health survey of 2,253 US adults by virtual care provider Teladoc found that:
-
Those seeking mental health support Gives almost the same high ratings for virtual and face-to-face mental health care experiences.
-
92 percent Many people seeking virtual mental health support report at least some improvement during a pandemic, with more than one-third reporting “breakthroughs.”
-
75 percent The proportion of people with anxiety reported improvement after the fourth visit, and 76% of people with depression reported improvement after the third visit.
While this technology is promised to meet a wide range of needs while improving access and even reducing costs, there are a few things to keep in mind. For example, a Teladoc study showed that:
-
Almost 70 percent Many respondents find it extremely difficult and overwhelming to use multiple websites, mobile apps, and virtual care platforms to address mental health.
-
78 percent They said they prefer a single unified experience for virtual care of mental and physical health.
Privacy issues
Inga Shugaro, a healthcare industry analyst at itransition, a Denver-based software development company, said the use of Zoom for group therapy could pose a privacy risk.
“Healthcare technology vendors typically hold such meetings with specific telemedicine tools to take additional steps to ensure end-to-end security of customer health data with such apps. I recommend it, “she advised.
Data privacy concerns were also raised by Dr. Mark Kestner, Chief Innovation Officer of telemedicine service provider MediGuru.
“The data generated by virtual visits must comply with privacy standards and be integrated into the clinical plan to measure the quality and outcome of care,” he said. “The idea of” care everywhere “is interesting, but there are limits to clinical capabilities, such as state licenses and service qualifications. “
Employers also need to practice due diligence.
For both mental and physical telemedicine, he said, “Like regular in-network providers, we continue to monitor the quality and cost of telemedicine services, direct visits and-individual providers.”
Lin Grensing-Pophal, SHRM-SCP is a Wisconsin-based business journalist with experience in human resources consulting.
Related SHRM article:
Employers identify mental health priorities for the 2022 workforce
SHRM onlineJanuary 2022
Mental health apps offer new ways to support your employees.
SHRM onlineMay 2020
