How Psychological Telehealth Can Alleviate Society's Mental Health Burden: A Literature Review

Mental health professionals must establish new means to reach those in need that face obstacles related to geographical location, time limitations, and health. With the high incidence of mental illness, as well as the hypothesized increase in coming years, telehealth modalities propose a novel and far-reaching alternative to traditional therapy. This article outlines the positive aspects and interdisciplinary possibilities when telehealth is incorporated into mental health practice. Novel outlets including mHealth and the utilization of computer tablets as mental health facilitators are outlined. Considerations for practice including training are discussed, as well as potential future directions for the field. Available data supports telehealth as an effective mode for the treatment of clients who are unable to pursue mental health services in their current form. However, careful consideration and training for the mental health professional is needed if telehealth is to be effectively used to alleviate the mental health burden.     

Psychologist and Physician Interest in Telehealth Training and Referral for Mental Health Services: An Exploratory Study

The current study explored psychological and medical professionals’ interest in videoconferencing telehealth training and mental health telehealth referral. An online survey assessed 782 participants comprised of 669 psychological (45% male, Mean Age = 47.01, SD = 16.82) and 113 medical professionals (58% male, Mean Age = 46.19, SD = 12.40). Z-test analyses indicated that although psychological professionals were statistically more interested in receiving telehealth training, both groups reported some interest. Ranked responses indicated efficacy data, ethical issues, and legal concerns as the most endorsed areas of training interest. Referral concerns were also found. Findings were discussed related to both statistical and clinical significance. Application of findings is discussed related to future work, practice, and program creation. The development of telehealth training programs will provide interested professionals with tools required for practice and may serve as an impetus to increase utilization and/or referral.     

An Internet-Based Self-Help Program for the Treatment of Fear of Public Speaking: A Case Study

ABSTRACT

This article discusses the development of the first totally self-administered online CBT program for the treatment of a specific social phobia (fear of public speaking) called talk to me. The online program includes three parts. The assessment protocol gives the patient information about the problem, including impairment, severity, and the degree of fear and avoidance regarding the main feared situations. The structured treatment protocol ensures that the patient does not skip any steps in the treatment. The treatment protocol is a CBT program that provides exposure to the feared situation using videos of real audiences. Finally, the control protocol assesses treatment efficacy, not only at posttreatment, but also at every intermediate step. In this work we describe talk to Me and its practical application through a case study.