Mental health treatment no longer requires a physical consulting couch or prescription pad. By integrating mental health services into virtual medical practices, trailblazing organisations can offer better service and better outcomes to patients.
By Malibu Kothari
Each year, mental health issues cost Canadians, collectively, some $50 billion in healthcare and social services, lost productivity and decreased quality of life. The Mental Health Commission of Canada, which tracks such figures, further notes that many of those costs could be avoided if mental healthcare was more accessible and coordinated. It is a neat summation of a nationwide problem that seems to finally have a solution within reach.
Thanks to modern technology, it is possible to deliver medical care virtually. Most Canadians are familiar with the concept of online healthcare, even if they have not used a virtual walk-in clinic or “dial-a-doc” personally. Provinces are increasingly offering such services, especially as a cost-effective means of delivering better care to populations who may be quite removed from the nearest healthcare provider. By integrating mental health services into these systems, Canadians have the chance to benefit from new frontiers in mental health management.
The initial challenge for anyone with a mental health concern is finding services.
While some 20 per cent of Canadians will experience a mental health issue annually, some 60 per cent will go without treatment, according to the Mental Health Commission. At a basic level, this is driven by both awareness of services offered and geography. For example, while Canada’s urban zones offer many treatment options, awareness can be a major problem. In more rural and remote areas, even where practitioners or clinics exist, they may be quite far away or “hidden” in terms of local awareness of their existence.
Virtual mental health services remove distance as a barrier to access and provide a centralized hub that can help boost awareness of options. In theory, anyone with a phone and a data connection can link up with a service provider or work through a self-care programme. In practice, the kinks are still being worked out province-to-province, but test runs, such as the pan-Canadian ACCESS Open Minds initiative targeting rural and First Nations sites, are showing promising results.
Though still requiring an initial referring clinician, the ACCESS programme works to connect participants with screening, care programmes, and specialists within 72 hours of referral, versus the five to six months they might otherwise wait. Thanks to earlier interventions and more awareness of options, fewer crisis visits are needed. Plus, by providing a centralized point of service delivery, the ACCESS programme also targets a second major issue for those receiving mental healthcare, which is consistency of care.
The Second Frontier: Consistency of Care
Consistency of care is huge for those facing mental health challenges. Bouncing between doctors or programmes can result in conflicting diagnosis, repeated lab tests and medication trials, gaps in prescription or therapeutic support, higher costs, and of course, massive frustration in an already stressful time. Integrated virtual care centres help address each of these issues.
With a centralized, integrated delivery system, mental health patients would have a clear record to discuss with doctors, clinicians and counselors. Progress on recommended treatment path could be monitored easily, even if doctors were different for in-person visits. Further, by integrating with calendar and scheduling apps, patients and caregivers alike could be notified if prescriptions needed renewed, what appointments were made or missed, and what symptoms were presenting as a result of treatments or life situations.
All of it, together, adds up to more consistent support and care.
The Third Frontier: Cost Control
This improved support and care needn’t come at a higher cost, notes Dr. Stockdale Winder, the psychologist in charge of design and implementation of Saskatchewan’s mental health initiatives. In her experience, tech-delivered therapy reduces appointment no-shows, cuts down on travel time and expenses for patients and therapists, and offers patients greater flexibility in scheduling care around their regular work/life commitments, allowing them to be more present at work and in their communities.
Further, by giving more Canadians broader access to care in a much faster timeframe, everyone saves. It is not just the $50 billion of quality of life and productivity lost annually in the working population at stake. There is also the $280,000 in lifetime savings the Mental Health Commission of Canada estimates could be gained per child by timely handling of untreated mental health issues in the next generation.
The Final Frontier: Privacy and Choice
The last frontier for virtual integrated systems of mental healthcare is perhaps the most sensitive – privacy and choice in care. Many Canadians facing mental health challenges avoid treatment out of a desire to maintain their privacy and avoid any situation where choice about their care would be removed from them. Integrated virtual medical systems can address both of these concerns.
For privacy, by removing the need for repeated on-site visits to a clinician or therapist, it becomes easier for mental health patients to get the care their need anonymously. This is especially true for ongoing conditions, such as anxiety or depression, where research has shown that tech-delivered therapy, with support via email or over the phone, can be just as effective as face-to-face sessions. More flexibility in scheduling virtual and remote sessions also allows patients more time to be present “as usual” in their lives while still giving their mental health the attention it needs.
For choice, integrated online systems put the entire network of specialists within reach, rather than limiting patients to what is within reasonable driving distance. Opportunities for notes, clear records, and directives also help patients maintain control and choice while still receiving adequate and uncompromised care in times of mental crisis.
The Way Forward is Online
For too long, mental healthcare has been a fragmented space where individuals can miss out on critical help due to issues with access, affordability and integration with the national health system.
By integrating the nation’s mental health services into existing virtual health practices, all Canadians can have access to more services, more consistent care programmes, lower costs, and even greater privacy and choice as they manage their mental health.