December 7, 2009

Telepsychiatry in the Emergency Department: Overview and Case Studies

Written by Mike Williams, MPA, Michael Pfeffer, MPH, Juliana Boyle, MBA, The Abaris Group, and Donald M Hilty, MD, University of California, Davis, this report discusses the pros and cons of telemedicine and telepsychiatry. Telemedicine and telepsychiatry have existed in some form since the 1950s, though telepsychiatry was introduced into emergency departments fairly recently. This report examines the extent to which these services have been offered and identifies executive practices for sustainable ED telepsychiatry programs. The survey showed that only two of these programs were financially supported internally, and one program was partially supported internally and thus potentially financially sustainable. Despite the small number of participants and lack of data, the study's findings imply that the programs provide a much-needed service that is received positively by patients and providers. ED psychiatry programs appear to provide quick and specialized care to patients with the risk of psychiatry emergencies and have the potential to assist in reducing crowding in EDs and lowering costs. However, because of so few ED psychiatry programs exist, it is difficult to determine whether their full potential is being realized.