Psychotherapy & Technology 2014 Market Survey

Transcription

1 Psychotherapy & Technology 2014 Market Survey Summary Self Echo, a leading developer of technology designed for the mental health profession and to enhance wellness, recently commissioned an online survey conducted by Sigma Research Group to explore mental health clinician s attitudes and use of mobile technology in their practices. The study surveyed 401 mental health clinicians from various specialties, including licensed professional counselors, licensed clinical psychologists, licensed clinical social workers and licensed marriage and family therapists. The respondents were from the Northeast, Midwest, Southern and Western regions of the United States. The survey participants answered questions related to their practice and openness to technology to treat clients. While forty-two percent of the participating mental health practitioners indicated that they currently utilize specialized software of some kind in their practice, the respondents also expressed a desire for technological innovation to help treat their clients. Many reported technology that collected client s affect and the general mental states in between therapy visits would be useful in tracking their client s progress and improve treatment. Nearly threequarters of respondents (73 percent) felt that a mental health technology app that collects and aggregates data on clients between visits would be useful to tracking client progress, and fifty-nine percent felt that it was useful for treatment planning. Approximately two-thirds of respondents (66 percent) believed that using a mobile technology app would improve the ability to treat clients. Fifty-two percent of respondents felt that a mobile technology app would be useful in their assessment and diagnosis of clients. Over two thirds (68 percent) reported that integrating additional data into treatment would improve the clinical profession as a whole. The survey respondents also indicated a need for technology tools to organize their practice. The majority (64 percent) surveyed thought that a web-based organizational system would help them save time and money. Thirty-nine percent felt that such a system would improve the organization of their practice. While almost all clinicians use computers- with most using office programs and many using specialized programs for the mental health field- a majority (55 percent) still reported that creating session notes was the biggest organizational drain on their practice. The survey data was analyzed by Dr. Shelly Gable, professor of psychology at University of California, Santa Barbara and senior research director of Self Echo, LLC. The survey was conducted in June and July

2 Participant Demographics Total N= 401 Female: 303 (75.6%) Male: 98 ((24.4%) Breakdown of sample by occupation/licensing Licensed professional counselor/ clinical counselor: 34.2% Licensed marriage and family therapist: 6.% Licensed clinical social worker: 32.4% Licensed clinical psychologist (PhD or PsyD): 27.4% Regions of the county: Northeast: 25.9% Midwest: 22.4% South: 25.4% West: 26.2% Therapeutic orientation (N = 284; 117 did not answer with useable response) CBT/DBT % psychodynamic/humanistic % family systems 4 1.4% attachment/interpersonal 6 2.1% mix, with cbt % other, or mix with no CBT % 2

3 Number of total clients in caseload: Range Mean = (SD = 27) Median = 30 Number of clients seen per week Range 1-20 Mean = (SD = 5.6) Median = 15 Insurance vs. private pay In-network provider for at least one: 65.6% Out of network provider: 16% No insurance: 18% Information on Participants Client Base Cost per session Range (eliminated 1 s and 900 answers) Mean = 125/70 (SD = 57) Median = 120 Percentage with some private pay clients: 82.3% Of those with private pay clients, what % of total clients Range Mean = (SD = 34.8) Median = 32 Length of treatment for insurance client Median = 16 weeks Length of treatment for non-insurance client Median = 12 weeks 3

4 Software products used in practice now "Office/Related Programs (e.g., Word, Excel)" 72% Customized Database created for practice 23% Smartphone App given to client to provide information relevant treatment 8% Specialized software specific to the Mental Health field 42% Of the 42% using specialized software (42%, N=168/some listed more than one) Therapy Notes 23% (39/ % of total sample) SimplePractice 5% (8/ % of total sample) Livewire 4% (7/ % of total sample) My Client Plus 8% (13/ % of total sample) TheraNest Mental Health 8% (14/ % of total sample) ICANOTES 2% (4/ % of total sample) Ginger.io 1% (2/ % of total sample) Epitomax 1 1% (1/ % of total sample) Other: 70% Ones cited by multiple people Avatar-5/401 Care Logic 5/401 CPRS 4/401; 1% total sample) Epic 4/401 Office Ally 4/401 Therapist Helper 3/401 4

5 Administrative Responsibilities Associated with Practice Elements that are taking more time that they should in rank order with % 1. Creating Session Treatment Notes 55% 2. Filing Records/General Organization 50% 3. Insurance Billing and Reimbursements 44% 4. Diagnosis and Treatment Planning for each client 36% 5. Scheduling/Session Confirmations 32% 6. Session Payment Billing 24% 7. Payroll for Staff 6% Desire to keep client's case notes, insurance information, and summary files in one place, online. Agree 60% Neutral 23% Disagree 17% Using a web-based organizational system for my practice would save me time and money. Agree 64% Neutral 23% Disagree 12% 5

6 Use of Technology for Client Treatment Interested in using technology to help treat clients. Agree 73% Neutral 18% Disagree 9% Being able to get additional data on clients would improve clinicians ability to treat them. Agree 66% Neutral 23% Disagree 11% Integrating additional data into therapy practices would help clinicians advance their profession. Agree 68% Neutral 24% Disagree 8% Clients are often unable or unwilling to tell me important relevant information in session. Yes: 32% Of the 32% that said yes 60% say that it interferes with treatment 26% neutral 14% say it does not interfere How mental health practitioners believe that a software system that collects and aggregates data on patients between visits, and digitizes paperwork, would be useful to their practice (rating of 4 or 5 on usefulness). Tracking client progress 73% Treatment Planning 59% Assessment/diagnosis 52% Organization of practice 39% Saving time 36% 6