Telepsychiatry
Serving all of Arizona virtually, we’ve made high-quality psychiatric care more accessible than ever. Sanctuary also has been able to integrate telehealth with a wide range of their outpatient services which include but not limited to Depression, Anxiety, OCD, PTSD, ADHD, Substance Abuse Therapy and Substance Abuse Evaluations. No matter where you reside in our magnificent state, our team is dedicated to ensuring you receive the compassionate support you deserve, right from the comfort of your home.
Telepsychiatry can break down barriers and offers more privacy protections than face-to-face mental health care
Telehealth is treatment services that are provided over the internet (meeting Federally approved internet confidentiality and security standards) and the provider and client are in two different office sites. Both are able to see and communicate with each other over a monitor/screen and the session proceeds as if they were in the same room with one another. Serving all of Arizona virtually, we’ve made high-quality psychiatric care more accessible than ever. Sanctuary also has been able to integrate telehealth with a wide range of their outpatient services which include but not limited to Depression, Anxiety, OCD, PTSD, ADHD, Substance Abuse Therapy and Substance Abuse Evaluations. No matter where you reside in our magnificent state, our team is dedicated to ensuring you receive the compassionate support you deserve, right from the comfort of your home.
Preparing Patients for Telepsychiatry
It is always important that patients come prepared for their appointment and know what to expect. There are some basic steps to preparing patients for their telehealth appointment, as well as a few other important tasks for remote behavioral health visits.
​
Obtaining informed consent for tele-behavioral health
​
Patients can give informed consent through signed paperwork completed before the appointment and/or through verbal consent at the beginning of each session.
Protecting patients’ privacy
​
Why and when it is important to have privacy. Suggestions for finding a private location for the telehealth session.
How to communicate using email, text, or (if available) your telehealth platform’s chat feature — especially if there might be issues with personal safety.
Creating an emergency plan for tele-behavioral health
​
-
The patient’s location. Confirm the address where the patient is located at the time of the visit. This question should be asked before every tele-behavioral health session.
-
Emergency numbers for that location. In the medical record, document the numbers for local emergency services near the patient including police, fire department, mobile crisis unit, and the nearest urgent care or emergency room.
-
A local emergency contact or support person. Ask the patient to provide the name and phone number for a family member, friend, or neighbor who is nearby and can offer help in the event of a crisis. Get the patient’s authorization to release information to their emergency contact if needed.
-
The contact information for other health care professional(s). Ask the patient to share contact information for their other provider(s) and confirm that you will only contact them with their permission or in an emergency.
-
A plan if the telehealth visit is disconnected during an emergency. Discuss with the patient what to do if there is a problem with the audio or video connection. A first step could be reconnecting by phone or using just the audio and not video function on the device. If we believe the patient is in crisis, we would notify an emergency contact. We would discuss possible scenarios when the emergency plan may need to be used. This can include the following situations if they occur when you believe the patient may be in crisis.