The hybrid doctor–patient relationship in the age of technology – Telepsychiatry consultations and the use of virtual space

Abstract

The doctor–patient relationship is evolving and changing through the impact of many technological, social and environmental factors. These factors will be examined, especially the impact of changing attitudes among younger generations of physicians and patients who live in an information-driven networked world. Telepsychiatry is already over 50 years old and has a strong evidence base which suggests that it is a better form of practice compared with the traditional in-person consultation for certain patient groups. In particular, telepsychiatry encourages intimacy in relationships through the use of the ‘virtual space’ in the consultation, better collaboration between psychiatrists and primary care physicians, and improved patient satisfaction. The practice of psychiatry will change through the use of mobile devices, asynchronous consultations, and the opportunities that automated interpretation and translation bring to work across cultures. The future will likely bring many psychiatrists working increasingly in a hybrid model, both in-person, and online, using the strengths of both approaches to improve patient care.

Keywords:

• Telepsychiatry
• Doctor-patient relationship
• virtual space
• hybrid care
• psychiatric consultation

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank Hassaan Tohid, MBBS, who assisted with work on an early version of this paper.

Declaration of interest

Peter Yellowlees is a co-founder of HealthLinkNow Inc. Steven Chan’s work on translation technologies is supported by the APA/SAMHSA Minority Fellowship Program, a UC Davis Behavioral Center of Excellence grant, and the UC Davis Department of Psychiatry intramural research track funds. Steven Chan serves as Associate Editor for iMedicalApps. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.