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Use of Telepsychiatry in Emergency and Crisis Intervention: Current Evidence

  • Psychiatry in the Digital Age (J Shore, Section Editor)
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Abstract

Purpose of Review

The aim of this review is to evaluate recent literature on the use of telepsychiatry in mental crises or emergency situations.

Recent Findings

Results from recent studies which evaluated the implementation of a telepsychiatric consultation model in emergency departments point at a reduction of length of stay and a drop in admissions, increased cost-effectiveness, and improved satisfaction of patients and staff. There was almost no empirical evidence on videoconferencing in crisis intervention within the context of crisis resolution teams or online therapies. No study reporting on telepsychiatry videoconferencing in the context of disasters was found.

Summary

There is still very little but increasing empirical evidence supporting the implementation of telepsychiatry in emergencies. Other mental crisis–related implementation settings remain to be researched. The implications and future research potential are discussed.

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References

Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance •• Of major importance

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. LVR-Institute for Healthcare Research, Cologne, Germany

    Isabelle Reinhardt, Euphrosyne Gouzoulis-Mayfrank & Jürgen Zielasek

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, LVR-Clinic Cologne, Cologne, Germany

    Euphrosyne Gouzoulis-Mayfrank

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  1. Isabelle Reinhardt
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Correspondence to Isabelle Reinhardt.

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Isabelle Reinhardt and Euphrosyne Gouzoulis-Mayfrank each declare no potential conflicts of interest.

Jürgen Zielasek has received travel support and attendance fee waiver for attending the annual conference as a member of the scientific board of the annual congress from the German Association for Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics.

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Reinhardt, I., Gouzoulis-Mayfrank, E. & Zielasek, J. Use of Telepsychiatry in Emergency and Crisis Intervention: Current Evidence. Curr Psychiatry Rep 21, 63 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11920-019-1054-8

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