Besides the pandemic, there are many benefits to using telemedicine.
Canadians access mental health and addiction services I have long faced a myriad of challenges for. , Not knowing where to ask for help, long wait times, high costs, etc. These challenges were exacerbated by the pandemic, and the demand for these services surged.
Strict blockade restrictions have had a major impact on Canada's mental health and addiction. Data from many studies, including Statistic Canada'sCOVID-19 and mental health studies, show that mental health challenges, including depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorders, and substance use disorders. Shows an increase in percentage. One in four adults is positive for mental illness or addiction symptoms.
Telemental Health Services has been adopted in specialized fields such as psychiatry for over 10 years, but COVID-19 uses digital health solutions for outpatient treatment of mental health and addiction. It became an opportunity to increase the number rapidly. We need to continue the progress we have made in implementing these tools and work on implementing complementary tools such as Canada Health Infoway's electronic prescribing tool, Prescribe IT. The service provides safer and more efficient dosing management by connecting community-based prescribers such as doctors and nurse practitioners to local retail pharmacies and enabling digital prescription transmission.
Beyond the pandemic, there are many benefits to using telemedicine. These include improved access to care for patients in underserved populations and improved access to care for individuals experiencing stigma or fear associated with visits to mental health facilities. included. e-Prescribing complements virtual care as it helps reduce access barriers. This can be especially serious for those suffering from mental health challenges when there are additional steps, such as the need to communicate the same information to different health care providers multiple times. You can feel like a big hurdle.
The challenge in treating patients with mental health concerns is that the transition to care is more common. Patients often receive prescriptions from mental health professionals such as psychiatrists, but continuous care and treatment planning is managed by the primary care physician, increasing the risk of medication discrepancies. This highlights the urgent need to strengthen communication within the patient's care circle. This can often be achieved with digital health solutions. PrescribeIT's integrated and secure messaging tools enable pharmacists and prescribers to quickly respond to the right course of action and provide the patient with the optimal dosing approach.
During a recent research project, patients receiving mental health care believe in ensuring everything, so clinical use People in the care circle who have access to relevant information have found that they prefer to improve the sharing and exchange of mental health information for them to receive the best care. Patients discussed the importance of having access to a complete medical history. That way, you don't have to re-tell your entire story to each practitioner you meet.
Previous studiesalso show that medication errors can have a long-term impact on the trust between patients and physicians that is essential to successful treatment outcomes. I am. e-prescription tools can significantly reduce medication errors. PrescribeIT's secure messaging feature not only improves communication, but also enables digital transmission of prescriptions for lost or damaged prescriptions, transcription errors, poor readability, and prescriptions by paper or fax. Reduces the risk of other common problems.
Supporting and strengthening effective treatment of mental health concerns has never been more important. This is due to the increasing demand for services in recent years that far outweigh the services already available. Implementing digital health tools such as PrescribeIT, designed to integrate seamlessly with systems that are already in use, can help ensure success.
— Dr. Lydia Sequeira is a researcher in mental health informatics and CIHR HealthSystem ImpactPostdoctoral Fellow at Canada Health Infoway and CAMH's Digital Mental Health Institute.
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