Top 5 Advantages of Implementing TeleSpecialists’ Pediatric TelePsychiatry Services in Your Facility
Access to treatment for children and adolescents with mental health needs is more important than ever before. Due to a scarcity of resources and a nationwide shortage of psychiatrists available to treat these cases, many people are forced to wait weeks to receive treatment – or worse – don’t receive the necessary care at all. Implementing TeleSpecialists’ TelePsychiatry services in your facility ensures that your hospital will never have to turn patients away because of a lack of available physicians. Our pediatric TelePsychiatry service allows board-certified psychiatrists to virtually connect with child and adolescent patients 24/7 to provide the specialized treatment they need, all while helping your facility save on inpatient costs. Our TelePsychiatry program is a trusted and valuable service that can significantly improve patient outcomes in your facility.
ACCESS TO A CHILD AND ADOLESCENT PSYCHIATRIST CAN IMPROVE THE CARE OF PEDIATRIC PATIENTS IN YOUR FACILITY
The surge in mental health needs for children and adolescents has seen a meteoric rise post-coronavirus, leading the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP), and Children’s Hospital Association to declare a national emergency in children’s mental health. Now more than ever, children and teens are presenting to the emergency department with mental health needs at a significantly higher rate than pre-pandemic, likely due to the added stresses of physical isolation and fear.
Our pediatric TelePsychiatry services can help your facility be prepared to help those patients in an effective and timely manner by providing on-demand access to board-certified child and adolescent psychiatrists that give full psychiatric evaluations with exams, diagnoses, and individualized disposition/treatment plans in an emergent and consult liaison setting.
Even better, treatment can start without delay while waiting for placement in a higher level of care. With this service, patients no longer have to wait to see a psychiatrist to get the help they need, which also frees up your physicians to service other patients in the ED.
PSYCHIATRIC EVALUATIONS VIA TELEMEDICINE ARE JUST AS EFFECTIVE AS IN-PERSON EVALUATIONS
Thanks to the advancement of telemedicine in the health industry, gone are the days when the only access that patients had to see a physician was in person. In fact, the virtual model of care is just as effective as the in-person model. A study published in 2000 found that diagnoses in face-to-face and telemedicine interactions were the same in 96% of the patients seen, and 82% of children interviewed in the study actually preferred the virtual model. Our physicians not only provide accurate service via TeleCart, they also can help your facility save on costs of providing face to face clinical services per patient.
ADOLESCENT PATIENTS WITH ASD RESPOND MORE FAVORABLY TO TELEPSYCHIATRIC EVALUATIONS
Do you have children and adolescent patients who suffer from autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or severe anxiety? If so, then telepsychiatric care may serve as a more effective option to evaluate and treat those patients rather than in person care. Children with ASD often struggle with basic social interactions and are accustomed to communicating with friends and family via video conferencing. With our pediatric and adolescent TelePsychiatry services in your facility, a board-certified physician can be on screen within minutes to deliver quality care to those patients in a comfortable and familiar environment.
TELESPECIALISTS' PEDIATRIC TELEPSYCHIATRY SERVICES WILL LEAVE YOUR PATIENTS, PARENTS, AND ED PROVIDERS SATISFIED
As with all forms of technology, its value can be determined by its effectiveness – can it do what it is supposed to do – and whether the people using it are satisfied with its performance. Telepsychiatric services are no different;. fortunately, there is an overwhelming sense of positivity regarding telepsychiatry. Data collected over the past two decades show patient satisfaction rates and physician satisfaction rates are over 90% when compared to in-person psychiatric care. One study even showed that 91% of parents preferred videoconferencing due to the ease of access.
Satisfaction isn’t the only added benefit of our TelePsychiatry services – safety is too. Children in ED who don’t receive immediate help from psychiatrists often times face barriers to optimal care and are at risk for additional trauma as they await treatment. We can help your facility avoid these issues by ensuring that your patients are met virtually by a board-certified physician within minutes of their arrival to receive swift and quality care.
TELESPECIALISTS' TELEPSYCHIATRY SERVICES CAN HELP YOUR FACILITY SAVE ON COSTS
Parents, patients, and ED providers are not the only ones who will be satisfied with the benefits that our TelePsychiatry service line offers. Your facility will also be satisfied with lower costs in terms of utilization when using TelePsychiatry services for pediatric patients. Patients’ length of stay in ED is reduced when they receive telepsychiatric consults, which is a significant benefit to your facility – fewer inpatient costs and increased availability in your ED. Current data from studies primarily focus on cost savings for adult services, but when extrapolated, the data would be equivalent to pediatric services, which could help lower 30-day inpatient costs by as much as $2,300.
