A consolidated model for telepsychology practice

Abstract

Objective: In this paper, we identify available telepsychology guidelines, understand similarities and differences, and organize the contents into a model of core practice domains pertinent to a variety of applications of telepsychology practice. Method: A scoping review of current telepsychology guidelines was conducted to identify, organize, and distill available telepsychology guidelines (Arksey & O'Malley, 2005, Int J Soc Res Methodol, 8, 19-32). Results: We identified overlap among five sets of telepsychology guidelines currently available and presented a consolidated model including nine practice domains influenced by practice setting and modality.Conclusions: Telepsychology has the potential to address current issues in availability, accessibility, acceptability, anonymity, and affordability of mental health services but establishing or engaging in telepsychology practice has been daunting for many practitioners. Telepsychologists can disseminate applications of this model in different settings and with different modalities and this practice model can inform future development of competencies.This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made.

Covid-19 and Mental Health: The Growing Need of Telecounseling in Indonesia

“…Psychologists' competence in terms of communication skills and understanding between cultures is also important to take into account in telepsychology (McCord, Bernhard, Walsh, Rosner, & Console, 2020;NZPB, 2012). Telepsychology enables psychologists to meet clients from a wide variety of backgrounds.…”

“…Clients who have ideas or attempts to injure themselves and others, and to end their life are not advised to choose telecounseling. With a psychological crisis they experience, they are at higher risk of experiencing problems as a result of poorly controlled counseling settings (for example at home where they have the opportunity to take tools to selfharm) (McCord et al, 2020). In these conditions, of course, psychologists should not simply refuse clients.…”

“…Client skills in terms of communication technology are also aspects that need to be considered before receiving telecounseling services (APA, 2013;Haberstroh, 2009;McCord et al, 2020). Psychologists need to check whether the client has sensory problems or knowledge limitations that prevent them from accessing technology.…”

“…Telecounseling allows the psychologist to reach clients wherever they are. However, psychologists still need to pay attention to aspects of geographic and jurisdictional boundaries where they are entitled to practice (McCord et al, 2020). Typically, each psychological professional association has rules about who has the right to practice on the territory of its country.…”

Guest editorial: Introduction to the special issue on telepsychology: Research, training, practice, and policy

“…McCord, Bernhard, Walsh, Rosner, and Console (2020) (action edited by Timothy Elliott) identified, organized, and distilled five telepsychology guidelines to consolidate recommendations for organizations, individuals, and training programs. The three‐dimensional model highlights the importance of setting and modality on the application of guidelines and can serve to inform the development of competencies for psychologists.…”