Right Track Medical Group’s Telehealth Services

When the COVID-19 pandemic began in 2020, the need for alternatives to in-person healthcare became apparent. This further paved the way for telehealth to become a standard option for patients with a variety of needs, especially in the mental health field.

Right Track Medical Group immediately recognized that need. Even as in-person visits have resumed, Right Track clinics continue to offer telehealth services to further improve access to mental healthcare services throughout Mississippi and Alabama.

With telehealth as an option, getting timely and convenient treatment for mental health concerns is easier than ever before, said Right Track Medical Group’s Operations Director Dean Doty, LMSW.  Right Track’s innovative telehealth platform supports our mission of providing accessible, innovative and physician-led mental healthcare services to our patients.

Here are four ways that telehealth services increase access to mental healthcare:

1. Today’s telehealth technology is easy to use.

“Smartphones and tablets make telehealth so easy,” Doty said. “Most people have access to a smartphone or tablet of some sort, so they can easily access telehealth services wherever they are. The technology is right there and it’s readily accessible.”

The user-friendly platform Right Track Medical Group uses makes telehealth especially easy, simple and convenient.

Without ever having to download an app or other kind of software, patients can easily connect with their provider with the click of a link sent to them by email or text message. They can join from their home, their workplace or another comfortable space.

2. Telehealth is flexible and convenient.

With telehealth, distance, time and similar barriers become much less likely to prevent a patient from getting the care they need.

“Let’s say you live in a rural area and there’s no mental healthcare provider in your town. With telehealth, you can easily access someone who is two or three hours away,” Doty said. “Plus, someone suffering with anxiety or depression may not even feel safe or comfortable leaving their home and telehealth makes it easier for them to access care.”

On the clinic’s side, it’s easy for clinicians to offer open appointments to patients virtually. This is more efficient for the clinic and reduces the amount of time patients wait for care.

3. Telehealth appointments can make mental healthcare less intimidating.

Getting the most out of mental health treatment requires being honest and vulnerable about difficult emotions and experiences. It can be painful to think about these things, much less discuss them with another person.

For many patients, it can be less intimidating to share these issues virtually.

A similar issue is the stigma associated with receiving mental treatment. By accessing care via telehealth, patients don’t need to visit a physical mental healthcare clinic and worry as much about external stigma. While internal stigma or shame may remain, telehealth options go a long way toward reducing this obstacle.

4. Telehealth visits reduce other common barriers to care.

Some of the things that prevent individuals from accessing necessary mental healthcare are much more practical, such as the cost to travel and take time off work for an appointment.

When meeting in person, a brief appointment, such as a follow-up regarding new medication, can take much longer than it needs to once you factor in travel time. But with a telehealth visit, the appointment takes as much or as little time as it needs to, saving precious time and money.

Telehealth services are also covered by insurance, as companies recognize the importance of early intervention with mental health concerns.

If telehealth visits mean that someone receives the care they need as soon as they need it, they make for far better outcomes in terms of both cost and health.

To learn more or schedule an appointment, please call Right Track Medical Group at (662) 234-7601.