Telebehavioral Health: Technology-Enabled Behavioral Health

Telebehavioral Health: Technology-Enabled Behavioral Health

March 7, 2021 (Lanham, MD) Across the country and around the world, people’s lives are significantly upended by COVID-19. Research indicates that during quarantine, people can experience poorer mental health, including post-traumatic stress, avoidance behaviors, anger, fear of infection, and frustration and boredom (Brooks et al., 2020). Telebehavioral health became a necessity to provide behavioral health treatment during the COVID-19 pandemic, adhere with stay-at-home orders, and maintain social distancing (Wright et al., 2020). Published by the Behavioral Health Advancement Resource Center (BHARC), March 2021 Behavioral Health Spotlight offers insights and commentary on telebehavioral health.

Telebehavioral health is an approach to providing behavioral health clinical services, counseling, and health education and information using telecommunication and video communication technologies. Today, telebehavioral health is a standard practice and a rapidly growing approach to deliver clinical services to patients (Paterson et al., 2020). It has been well-received by both patients and providers. “With increasing adoption of telebehavioral health, we can reach the people who need help the most during the pandemic and beyond,” said Anton C. Bizzell, MD, BHARC advisor and CEO of The Bizzell Group (Bizzell). BHARC is funded by Bizzell.

The BHARC Behavioral Health Spotlight is a thought leadership series highlighting various behavioral health topics that impact communities across the United States and abroad. “Telebehavioral Health: Technology-Enabled Behavioral Health” was written by Mim Landry, a BHARC Advisory Council Substance Use and Mental Health Expert. The article describes the benefits of and current issues in telebehavioral health and includes a review and commentary of recent literature on this important topic.

About BHARC

The Behavioral Health Advancement Resource Center (BHARC) is an authoritative source for behavioral health information, insights, technical assistance, training, and innovative tools. BHARC is a mechanism to share evidence-based behavioral health interventions and best practices. The BHARC Advisory Council consists of experts in substance use, mental health, clinical trials, pharmaceuticals, and healthcare standards and quality.

About Bizzell

Bizzell US (Bizzell) is a strategy, consulting, and technology firm that designs innovative solutions to help build healthy, secure, and sustainable communities in our nation and around the world. Bizzell leverages the combined experience of our diverse subject matter experts to develop data-driven, research-informed answers to the world’s most complex challenges—ensuring our clients achieve their vision and goals. For more information, visit: Bizzell US.

Black History Month

Black History Month

Black History month is an opportunity to celebrate the achievements and contributions of African Americans that are so deeply woven into the history of the United States. African American leaders in mental health, government, civil right, the arts, entertainment and sports have influenced generations of Black Americans and taken unprecedented risks to initiate change. Yet, it is important to acknowledge the continued, rampant systemic racism and inequities in wealth, education, criminal justice, and mental health and health care and the impact on the lives of Black Americans.

 

Dr. Anton C. Bizzell, CEO of the Bizzell Group, touches on his own encounters with racism as a Black American physician in this Psychology Today article. He challenges the corporate world to take action to reverse the trauma that Black Americans experience by hiring more Black Americans, offering physical and mental health care resources, and providing supportive work environments that are free of microaggressions.

 

READ MORE: Black History Month

State of Mental Health, Part 2: Where we’re headed in 2021

In a recent Psychology Today article, Dr. Anton C. Bizzell shares how COVID-19 affected everyone’s mental health in 2020 and what the predictions and preparations are for 2021. Dr. Bizzell believes that mental health will gain a foothold in the overall healthcare conversation and will be recognized as a global health problem. We must couple hope with action to tackle the mental health effects of the pandemic, Dr. Bizzell writes. With so many around the world touched by COVID, the topic of mental health will finally begin to lose its stigma, he believes.

READ MORE: Psychology Today

The State of Mental Health, Part 1: What happened in 2020

In Psychology Today, Dr. Anton C. Bizzell discusses how mental health was impacted throughout 2020 because of COVID-19. Once COVID-19 took hold worldwide early last year, its mental health effects quickly began to emerge. There were strong emotional reactions to the virus, particularly fear, uncertainty, and grief. Shutdowns affected societies everywhere; families and friends were separated; and individuals spent weeks or months alone. While hope is on the horizon with the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines, Dr. Bizzell writes, the pandemic and its fallout are far from over. It is more important than ever to examine the impact of the virus on mental health in 2020 and what lessons we can apply to improve mental wellness in 2021 and beyond.

READ MORE: Psychology Today,