Why Telepsychiatry?
About Telepsychiatry
Telepsychiatry or “telepsych” means being seen by a mental health specialist like a psychiatrist through a HIPAA secure and private video connection over the internet in order to diagnose and treat those wanting to improve their mental health. Telemedicine, in the US, is a growing way to treat patients. Academic research shows that for a 20-minute traditional in-person appointment, over 120 minutes is spent in effort to attend the appointment between commute and wait times. Additionally, it can often take months to get scheduled to see a psychiatrist and one must overcome the stigma of seeking mental health care. Access can also be an issue for people living in remote areas without a psychiatrist.
Telepsychiatry Benefits
Telepsychiatry is an answer to these challenges. An appointment with Dr. Wright using telepsychiatry allows an individual to be seen from the comfort of wherever they prefer, with ultimate privacy and to be scheduled right away. Telepsychiatry has been shown to be just as effective as traditional in-person encounters and many patients prefer it.
The Telepsychiatry Process
An intake session is 55 minutes and is considered a consultation to connect and get to know the goals of the patient as well as what some of the strengths and challenges are. Additionally, we can begin to determine an accurate diagnosis and start a conversation about treatment plans. From here, sessions are catered to meet the needs of the patient and are usually more frequent in the beginning (perhaps once every two weeks) with appointments eventually being stretched out to once a month or once every two or three months until things are stabilized/optimized with the goal of finding that stabilization as quickly as possible.
Appointments can range from 20 minutes to 55 minutes depending on the needs and wants of the patient. Patients will work with Dr. Wright for mainly medication management/treatment planning, but Dr. Wright will weave therapy into each medication management appointment. Dr. Wright is happy to collaborate with another therapist treating the patient for talk therapy or counseling.
Once you have achieved your goals of treatment, Dr. Wright will be happy to discuss transitioning your care back to your primary care doctor if and when reasonable. Free consultation is offered to your provider during the transition if they have questions.