Evidence base for Tellehealth?

[Kiki5]

Hello there. There are peer reviewed journal articles on the efficacy of telehealth! Lots about that you can read for free if you google. I’m not sure if I am

allowed to post links to journal articles here but have a look via pubmed. If I’m allowed to I can drop you some. This is actually my first post on the forums, so hi!

There have been meta analyses conducted too and you can find studies even prior to Covid. 

For me personally, I much prefer in person but when we were in Covid, Telehealth was a godsend to stay connected. Also as others have said, if you live rurally. Some people also have conditions where they can’t leave the house but this is a way they can get help. 

So yes, there appears to be both scientific evidence supporting its effectiveness (refer to studies, but you may need to understand how to interpret results) as well as what others are saying here. The anecdotal evidence is powerful. Access to help seems always better than none but I understand building a relationship takes time. I assume here you are mainly referring to mean to health issues. Telehealth is used for other conditions too. Cheers 

[Kiki5]

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557174/

[rav3n]

hey there @Mathew76 - you mentioned you weren't able to access the second article, here's a pdf accessible version i've found of it if you're interested in giving it a read still: AM_Anxiety_SR_Final_.pdf

and @Kiki5 you're more than welcome to share links to resources/articles as long as they meet our community guidelines. 

it's definitely an interesting topic! and as mentioned by others, i think the effectiveness of telehealth can vary depending on why you're accessing it and what type of support you personally prefer. for example, some people with social anxiety or agoraphobia may tend to lean towards telehealth services and be more consistent using online supports as opposed to visiting face-to-face. google scholar will probably be a great place to search us some more resources 😊

[Kiki5]

That’s great. Thank you. From my quick reading, there’s certainly evidence around the efficacy of Telehealth. From my perspective, also interesting to note the pre-COVID literature.

[0ddsidian]

Hi @Kiki5 ! You're right; there's a lot of literature out there. It also depends on the population and demographic you're looking at as well. I also really liked looking at the research from prior to COVID, although I know that telehealth has skyrocketed since COVID emerged.

It definitely brings up a lot of discussion relating to different support needs, communication styles and ways of engaging. I haven't got an article to quote, but interestingly it seems like SANE has a high proportion of Autistic people utilising our digital mental health programs, so there might be evidence to say that telehealth is particularly beneficial for that demographic.

But as you've said; any help is better than none, right? Even if F2F was found to be more effective than telehealth, that doesn't automatically correlate to telehealth being ineffective or negative. More research is needed, and we're always collecting data at SANE about whether our Guided Recovery and RecoveryClub programs are helping 😀

[Mathew76]

Thank you for the link.

That paper AM_Anxiety_SR_Final_.pdf was produced at Bond University. 
The paper is a meta search of some 4000 papers excluded and came down to 6 studies considered, one in Australia.
The Australian study had all of 26 participants equally divided. So 12/13 actually used telehealth. 

Considering the thousands of telehealth appointments in Australia, this is not the greatest sample. There are some very subjective factors involved. 

Consider the sample size and might of the Australian industry. And and a huge industry it has become. Medicare rebates flow like water and massive unsustainable gap fees are beginning to appear. There are some fantastically greedy practitioners on slick websites. Likewise, one can waste half a life time talking to useless F2F carers. The test for uselessness, is do you get help in a crisis?

I take the point it is a choice, depending on ones circumstances. 

If one is broken down on the side of the road it might be quite nice to have a telehealth appointment with a crystal healer, before you phone RACT, that is if you can afford it. 



 

[Kiki5]

Hi there 

Yes, totally see where you’re coming from and there are a number of considerations.  We always want to look at sample size, and other factors like demographics. 

I think it’s a good question and one worth looking into further. Lots of variables. 
Another thing I’d offer from my experience, I have equally felt I’ve perhaps “wasted” time in person with therapists. It’s really tough and I think it takes a long time to find the right fit. 

I hope you’re doing ok. 

[Kiki5]

Yes very interesting and can see how there could be particular benefits for ppl with ASD. I found this one interesting https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17549507.2018.1465123

As always, the more research the better! It was actually nice for me to read this thread. I studied psychological sciences, but unfortunately on hold due to, ironically, my own mental health.

Good thread OP. And thanks for letting me join in.