Date of Award

2020

Degree Name

Healthcare Administration

College

College of Business

Type of Degree

M.S.

Document Type

Research Paper

First Advisor

Alberto Coustasse

Abstract

Background and purpose: A fifth of the U.S. population suffers from some mental illness, and their need for attention is increasing, new technologies have permitted telepsychiatry to allow remote attention to this population. This study explores the impact of telepsychiatry on the cost and access of community patients to mental health services.

Methods: A review of the literature in different electronic databases such MEDLINE, PubMed and ScienceDirect was carried out to investigate the scope of telepsychiatry in the community care of patients with mental illness, identifying 479 related articles, of which 35 were included in this study. The search of information was limited to articles and studies written on the English language and published from 2009 to 2020.

Results: Access to telepsychiatry during the last decade has prevailed mainly in rural areas with lack of services and for the care of populations with special needs. It was also found that the use of telepsiquaitria is reliability for various psychiatric disorders, allowing its diagnosis, treatment and follow-up. In relation to cost, it was found that it does not increase these and that it can even reduce them in the long term.

Conclusions: The results obtained from this research work can be used to carry out future studies that allow us to continue generating information that supports the advantages and demonstrates the current scope of telepsychiatry and its viability in the future of medical practice.

Subject(s)

Psychiatry -- Methodology.

Telecommunication in medicine.

Health services administration.

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