A small survey has found that although therapists appear to prefer virtual sessions over in-person meetings, a significant proportion admit to being distracted while delivering care.
A third of respondents admitted to providing lower-quality care to clients during online sessions. Overall, 39% admitted to checking emails and social media while providing virtual care.
These were the results of a survey of 600 therapists conducted and published by OnlineTherapy.com, a virtual directory for teletherapists and counselors. It’s also an affiliate of the controversial app BetterHelp, stating on their website that the company “may receive compensation from BetterHelp if you purchase products or services through the links provided.”
Online care is generally well received by therapists: nearly half said they prefer virtual sessions over in-person meetings. They appreciated many advantages of virtual therapy, such as working from home which allows therapists to keep a flexible schedule and increases their availability. Video sessions also provide therapists with a uniquely intimate look into their clients’ daily lives, making assessing their mental health easier.
However, teletherapy has introduced its own challenges. Besides the struggle to remain for therapists to stay focused themselves, 56% of those surveyed said their clients are more easily distracted during virtual sessions, and 48% reported technological issues as a major impediment to their practice.
Peter Yellowlees, MD, of UC Davis Health in Sacramento, California, noted with concern and confusion that 16% of therapists reported substance use before or during their sessions.
“There are all sorts of people in this world who call themselves therapists, most of whom have very reasonable training, but quite a number don’t,” Dr Yellowlees told MedPage Today, expressing serious doubts about whether these rates of social media distraction and substance use during virtual sessions would ring true for mental health clinicians with PhDs and MDs.
According to a spokesperson from OnlineTherapy.com, the survey only asked if respondents were currently practicing mental health professionals and did not ask for their credentials or certifications.
The results of the survey did, however, echo Dr Yellowlees’s own concerns of mental health problems on the rise of among therapists in general. The vast majority (90%) said that during the last year they suffered mental health issues, including anxiety disorders (50%) and depressive disorder (48%). This would likely impact the level of care that a therapist able to provide to their clients.
A further concern is that 17% of respondents reported seriously considered suicide since the start of the pandemic.
But Dr Yellowlees also sees teletherapy as a way for therapists to start getting the help that they need, rather than simply treating themselves in fear of stigma or possible repercussions for their licences.
“It’s undoubtedly helped significantly,” Dr Yellowlees said. “We know that certain teletherapies are actually good for the mental health of providers, as well as the patients.”
Source: MedPage Today
