Trends in Telepsychiatry and In-Person Psychiatric Care for Depression in an Academic Health System, 2017–2022
Catherine K. Ettman, Carly Lupton Brantner, Michael Albert, Fernando S. Goes, Ramin Mojtabai, Stanislav Spivak, Elizabeth A. Stuart, Peter P. Zandi
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: The authors aimed to assess differences in appointment completion rates between telepsychiatry and in-person outpatient psychiatric care for patients with depression in an academic health system. METHODS: Electronic health records of encounters for patients (ages ≥10) with a depression diagnosis and at least one scheduled outpatient psychiatric appointment (N=586,266 appointments; November 2017-October 2022) were assessed for appointment volume and completion of telepsychiatry versus in-person sessions. RESULTS: Telepsychiatry became the dominant care modality after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, although the number of telepsychiatry and in-person appointments nearly converged by October 2022. Logistic regression showed that telepsychiatry appointments (July 2020-October 2022) were more likely (OR=1.30, 95% CI=1.27-1.34) to be completed than in-person appointments. CONCLUSIONS: Telepsychiatry appointments were less likely to be canceled or missed than in-person appointments, suggesting that telepsychiatry improved efficiency and continuity of care. As in-person operations resume following the pandemic, maintaining telepsychiatry services may optimize hospital-level and patient outcomes.