Recommendations for policy and practice of telepsychotherapy and e-mental health in Europe
What conditions need to be in place for telepsychotherapy and digital mental health to be used responsibly and effectively across Europe? This paper, produced on behalf of the EFPA Project Group on eHealth, distils a set of concrete recommendations for policy makers, professional associations, and practitioners. A key reference document for anyone working on the governance or regulation of digital psychological services.
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought with it a great need for the use of telepsychotherapy and other interventions using psychological theories and techniques to support both mental and physical health. E-mental health presents a wide range of opportunities in mental health care to overcome barriers for receiving conventional psychological care, especially when psychotherapists and clients find themselves in (self)quarantine resulting from a pandemic. For many psychotherapists and clients, the current situation provides a first experience with e-mental health and reliance on telepsychotherapy or other means of technology to provide or receive care, respectively. Psychotherapeutic circumstances may often be suboptimal, with psychotherapists and clients experiencing difficulties finding a private space or sufficient time for an undisturbed consultation. This article aims to highlight recommendations on how to create the best possible context in which e-mental health supplements and enhances current services for clients. These recommendations are grouped according to 3 categories of key stakeholders: psychotherapists, health services and regulatory agencies, and developers. This article focuses on (a) how to make optimal use of technology in psychotherapeutic practice; (b) how to integrate e-mental health into the health care system to allow for a safe, transparent, and effective environment for (self) care; and (c) how to develop e-mental health applications.
Keywords: telepsychotherapy, e-mental health, Europe, policy, recommendations, EFPA
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Reference
Van Daele, T., Karekla, M., Kassianos, A. P., Compare, A., Haddouk, L., Salgado, J., Ebert, D. D., Trebbi, G., Bernaerts, S., Van Assche, E., & De Witte, N. A. J. (2020). Recommendations for policy and practice of telepsychotherapy and e-mental health in Europe and beyond. Journal of Psychotherapy Integration, 30(2), 160–173. https://doi.org/10.1037/int0000218