Telepsychiatry and Telepsychology: Possibilities and Limitations of Remote Work

Abstract

Purpose: analysis of domestic and foreign literature on the possibilities, features, benefi ts and limitations of telepsychiatry/ telepsychology. Material and method: the keywords “telepsychiatry, telepsychology, remote psychiatric care, impact of pandemic on mental health, information technology in psychiatry” were used to select publications available in MEDLINE/PubMed, Scopus, Web of science, eLibrary, Google. Results: literature research has shown that telepsychiatry is a service-enhancing modality that promotes equitable access and high levels of patient satisfaction. The coronavirus pandemic has led to an inevitable increase in the use of this method in the provision of psychiatric as well as psychological services. Telepsychiatry has both clinical and non-clinical applications, e.g. in administration, training and research. A large body of evidence shows that telepsychiatric diagnostic assessments are reliable and that the clinical outcomes of telepsychiatric interventions are comparable to those of traditional treatment among various patient groups, irrespective of age, diagnosis and other variables. However, the evidence base for telepsychiatry/telepsychology is still relatively limited in many aspects of effectiveness, and is often complicated by methodological problems, including technological diffi culties, negative opinions and pessimistic perceptions among psychiatrists, and several legal, ethical and administrative barriers. These impede wide implementation of telepsychiatry and its integration into everyday medicine. Conclusion: further advances in remote technology and research will solve many of the problems of telepsychiatry, and its development is likely to consist in the application of telepsychiatry as an adjunct to conventional medicine, and in the development of hybrid models, incorporating both conventional and telepsychiatric forms of psychiatric and psychological care.