The use of telepsychiatry within forensic practice: a literature review on the use of videolink – a ten-year follow-up

Abstract

In the last decade telepsychiatry -the use of telecommunications technologies to deliver psychiatric services from a distance -has been increasingly utilised in many areas of mental healthcare. Since the review by Khalifa and colleagues in 2007 the body of literature relevant to the forensic applications of telepsychiatry has grown substantially, albeit not by much in the United Kingdom.In the current review we aim to provide an update summary of the literature published since 2007 to determine the effectiveness and feasibility of increasing telepsychiatry utilisation in forensic practice.The literature reviewed provides some encouraging evidence that telepsychiatry is a reliable, effective and highly acceptable method for delivering mental healthcare in forensic settings. There are also a number of papers that indicate the use of telepsychiatry may be cost effective for health providers in the longer term.Further research is required to consider the potential legal and ethical implications of using telepsychiatry in forensic settings.

Telepsychiatry in intellectual disability psychiatry: literature review

“…non-intellectual disability) mental health services. [19][20][21][22] These, however, do not focus on the key issues encountered by the intellectual disability patient group and the specialist psychiatric services that serve them.…”

“…Several innovative telepsychiatry services have been developed for use in adult, forensic, and child and adolescent mainstream (i.e. non-intellectual disability) mental health services 19 – 22 . These, however, do not focus on the key issues encountered by the intellectual disability patient group and the specialist psychiatric services that serve them.…”

Remote consultations in prison mental healthcare in England: impacts of COVID-19

“…Both patients and services are increasingly accepting of the use of video links in forensic mental healthcare. 7 However, the acceptability of telepsychiatry may vary according to individual patients’ preferences, needs and underlying mental disorder(s). Tucker et al found that, although prisoners preferred face-to-face assessments, remote consultations were preferred for discussing difficult topics such as sexual abuse.…”

Digital psychiatry and COVID-19: the Big Bang effect for the NHS?

“…Benefits have been shown in criminal justice and other forensic settings, where safety concerns about physical movement of high-risk patients can be mitigated through remote assessments and remote expert testimony. 17 Remote psychiatry has also been demonstrated to have a positive impact on the assessment and management of individuals with intellectual disabilities, with some data showing no loss in therapeutic engagement compared with face-to-face assessments and even some evidence for improved engagement among children with severe anxiety and autism. 18 In addiction psychiatry, remote treatment of opioid use disorder produced similar outcomes as face-to-face treatment in both general 19 and obstetric settings.…”