Telehealth: The intersection of technology and health

There's no doubt that technology is changing how we deliver and receive healthcare, and this has become even more apparent since the recent pandemic.

Telehealth is “the use of information and communication technologies to provide healthcare services to patients or clients remotely i.e., when not physically in the same room”. It's one of the most widespread and innovative applications of technology in healthcare to date.

Telehealth has many benefits for both patients and healthcare professionals:

• Improving access and equity: Telehealth can help overcome the barriers of distance, time, and cost that often restrict access to quality healthcare for those who need it most. It allows access to care for underserved and vulnerable populations, who often face challenges accessing affordable mental health services, as well as social and cultural barriers. This includes people in rural or remote regions, Indigenous Australians, refugees or culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) populations, people with anxieties and phobias, and those with disabilities.

• Enhancing quality and effectiveness: Telehealth can enhance the quality and effectiveness of healthcare through timely and appropriate diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up. It can improve coordination and cooperation between healthcare providers. It also supports evidence-based decision-making, which may be guided in real-time by the use of digital tools and resources, such as clinical guidelines, decision aids, and online databases.

• Increasing satisfaction and empowerment: Telehealth can increase the satisfaction and empowerment of patients and healthcare professionals, by offering convenience, flexibility, and choice, and by promoting patient-centred care and self-management. Telehealth can also reduce the stigma and discrimination associated with seeking help for mental health issues, by allowing for privacy, anonymity, and confidentiality.

Telehealth is particularly relevant and useful for psychiatry - often referred to as telepsychiatry, as mental health care often relies on communication and interaction, rather than physical examination or intervention.

Many types of services, such as assessment, diagnosis, medication management, psychotherapy, counselling, education, and ongoing support or coaching can be offered through telepsychiatry.

Most importantly though, telepsychiatry has been shown to be effective, acceptable, and feasible for various mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, substance use disorders and neurodevelopmental disorders.

Technology is transforming health care, and telehealth and psychiatry are at the forefront of this transformation. By using telehealth, Akkadian Health provides better, faster, more affordable and convenient mental health care to more people.