In this very special episode of HIMSSCast, host Jonah Comstock welcomes his mother Carol Hornbeck, a marriage and family therapist in Minneapolis, and her colleague Edwin Shurig, a mental health counselor in Indianapolis. Along with Healthcare IT News Senior Editor Kat Jercich, we discuss what it was like for small practices and independent therapists to make the sudden move to telehealth in the face of COVID-19 — and how the experience will shape the future of their practice.

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Talking points

• Edwin and Carol’s telehealth experiences prior to the pandemic.
• Which telehealth tools helped with the transition?
• Pros and cons of teletherapy.
• Telehealth: great for couples, tough for kids.
• Going beyond telehealth: apps in the session room.
• Therapeutic applications of fitness apps and trackers.
• Thoughts on teletherapy startups.
• The importance of therapists connecting to each other.
• Regulatory challenges of teletherapy – especially licensure.
• How Edwin and Carol will use telehealth going forward.
• Payment parity and reimbursement challenges.
• Advice for telehealth tech vendors.

More about this episode

The Virtual Care Paradigm Episode 1

The Virtual Care Paradigm Episode 2

Carol on "Talking Your Way to Change"

COVID-19 ratcheting up demand for virtual behavioral healthcare, Cigna finds

Telehealth use on rise for behavioral health

Now is the time for providers to be proactive about telehealth

Teladoc Health data shows virtual mental healthcare boom