Telemental health and student veterans: A practice perspective through voices from the field

Abstract

The area of human services is constantly adapting to best meet the needs of a changing client population. One group that is at an increased need of mental health services is the rapidly growing student veteran population. Through the use of telemental health, this population’s unique mental health needs can be addressed while also considering their concerns for stigma and accessibility. With telemental health gaining credibility, there are a number of technologies, such as Avatars, Gamification, videoconferencing, mobile health applications, and short message service (SMS) that are being utilized during counseling sessions to provide quality mental health services. Based upon a practice perspective, the authors interviewed multiple clinicians, or “voices from the field,” who are at the forefront of telemental health, in an effort to share the most novel forms of telemental health and best practices. Recommendations from these experts, as well as ethical considerations are included.

Keywords:

• Telemental health
• student veterans
• mental health