Telehealth and rural depression: Physician and patient perspectives.
Abstract
Due to a shortage of mental health professionals (MHPs) in rural areas, primary care physicians (PCP) are often the first, and in many cases, the only providers of depression treatment for rural individuals. This study was an investigation of the acceptability of behavioral telehealth to PCPs and patients with depression as a way of making mental health treatments more accessible to rural patients. The researchers conducted 10 focus groups across rural Nebraska with PCPs and patients they had treated for depression. A qualitative multiple-case study approach was used to analyze the transcriptions. The participants felt that behavioral telehealth is a reasonable solution to the access-to-care problem. They expressed concern that professional and therapeutic relationships would be difficult to maintain at a distance and they provided suggestions for how to preserve these relationships when using technology to deliver treatment such as focusing on fostering collaborative relationships between MHPs and PCPs. It is essential for MHPs and PCPs to develop and maintain a collaborative working relationship that will facilitate frequent communication.
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An on-site clinical navigator may help personalize televideo care, guide patients through encounters, and prevent undue emotional escalation.
“an on-site clinical navigator may help make the experience more personal,47 help patients navigate clinical encounters,48 and safeguard against undue emotional escalations.49”
From Task-sharing approaches to improve mental health care in rural and other low-resource settings: a systematic review (2018) · cites this paper as [47]
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- Authors
- Swinton, J. J., Robinson, W. D., & Bischoff, R. J.
- Affiliations
- Kansas State University (US)
- University of Nebraska Medical Center (US)
- University of Nebraska–Lincoln (US)
- Venue
- Families, Systems, & Health
- Published
- 2009
- Volume
- 27
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 172-182
- ISSN
- 1091-7527 (ISSN-L)
- 1939-0602
- OpenAlex
- W1970514698
- Cited by
- 62
- References
- 20
- Citations by year
- 2026: 1 · 2025: 1 · 2024: 3 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 3 · 2021: 2 · 2020: 3 · 2019: 3 · 2018: 3 · 2017: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 9 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 5.03
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Families Systems & Health (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- University of Nebraska Rural Initiative
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Telemedicine and Telehealth Implementation
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Applied Psychology › Digital Mental Health Interventions
- Keywords
- telemedicine, primary care physicians, mental health professionals, access to mental health care, acceptability, therapeutic relationship, physician-patient relationship, rural mental health
- MeSH terms
- Community Mental Health Services, Depression, Female, Health Services Accessibility, Humans, Male, Nebraska, Patient Acceptance of Health Care, Physicians, Family, Professional-Patient Relations, Rural Population, Focus Groups, Telemedicine
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