Illinois Telepsychiatry Symposium Set for March 6
Published: February 20, 2013
A symposium focused on how organizations can benefit from the use of telepsychiatry is set for Wednesday, March 6, in Springfield and Chicago.
The event will run from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s UIC Forum, 725 W. Roosevelt Rd. in Chicago and at Memorial Medical Center’s Wedeberg Conference Center, 701 N. First St. in Springfield.
With the closure of mental health facilities and the drastic reduction in community mental health dollars, people with behavioral health issues often arrive in hospital Emergency Departments (EDs) seeking specialized psychiatric care. This has resulted in overcrowding, lengthened ED stays, delayed care and unnecessary hospital admissions. The increased utilization of emergency departments and the prolonged boarding greatly impact the care of all the patients who present to the ED.
Telepsychiatry programs for the ED are being developed by various hospitals around the country to address the problem of providing prompt, appropriate care to ED patients with behavioral health issues. In 2007, the South Carolina Department of Mental Health and the South Carolina Hospital Association developed a statewide telepsychiatry consultation network for all South Carolina hospital emergency rooms.The goal was to use telephone or videoconferencing for “timely assessment, early initiation of treatment, reduction in lengths of stays, potential savings to hospitals and improved discharge planning for both outpatient and inpatient follow-up services as needed.”
This telepsychiatry network cut admissions, reduced lengths of stay and saved money.The program produced measurable results, in terms of patient outcomes and cost savings. The statewide average length of stay for patients experiencing a behavioral crisis across participating hospitals declined from six to three days. One hospital reported a savings of $150,000 in the first eight months of its participation in the service.
Topics covered will include overcoming barriers to implementation in telepsychiatry, clinical telepsychiatry in the emergency department and clinical telepsychiatry in outpatient settings.
To register for the event online, visit www.siumed.edu/cme and click on CME Calendar/Registration. Contact the SIU School of Medicine’s Office of Continuing Medical Education at 217-545-7711 for more information.