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Implementing Video to Home to Increase Access to Evidence-Based Psychotherapy for Rural Veterans

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Abstract

This clinical demonstration project used facilitation to implement VA Video to Home (VTH) to deliver evidence-based psychotherapies to underserved rural Veterans, to increase access to mental health care. Participants were Veterans seeking mental health treatment at “Sonny” Montgomery Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Jackson, MS, and/or its six community-based outpatient clinics. Measures included patient encounter and demographic data, patient and provider interviews, reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance (RE-AIM) factors, measures of fidelity to manualized evidence-based psychotherapies (EBPs), and qualitative interviews. The project was deemed feasible; 93 (67 men, 26 women, including 77 rural, 16 urban) patients received weekly EBPs via VTH. Nearly half were Black (n = 46), 36 of whom (78.3%) were also rural. Fifty-three (48.4%) were Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom Veterans. Ages varied widely, from 20 to 79 years. Primary diagnoses included posttraumatic stress disorder (41), depressive disorders (22), anxiety disorders (nine), insomnia (eight), chronic pain (eight), and substance use disorder (five). Fifteen clinicians were trained to deliver eight EBPs via VTH. Growth in number of Veterans treated by telehealth was 10.12 times and mental health visits were 7.34 times greater than the national annual average of growth for telehealth at VHA facilities. Illustrative examples and qualitative data from both patients and providers suggested overall satisfaction with VTH. This demonstrates the benefits of VTH for increasing access to mental health treatment for rural patients and advantages of an implementation facilitation strategy using an external facilitator. Continuing research should clarify whether certain patients are more likely to participate than others and whether certain EBPs are more easily delivered with VTH than others.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Mona Ritchie, PhD, MSW, and JoAnn Kirchner, MD, for implementation facilitation training and mentoring; and Rhonda Johnson, PhD, BC-FNP, BC-ANP, and Mr. John Peters for assistance and expertise in providing telehealth services.

Funding

This work is the result of a grant from the VA Office of Rural Health, N16-FY15Q1-S1-P01392 (4440), to Jan Lindsay, support by the VA South Central Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center, and use of resources and facilities at the Houston VA HSR&D Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness and Safety (CIN13-413). The opinions expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Department of Veterans Affairs, the U.S. Government or Baylor College of Medicine.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Houston VA HSR&D Center for Innovations in Quality, Effectiveness and Safety (MEDVAMC 152), 2002 Holcombe Blvd, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Jan A. Lindsay, Sonora Hudson, Lindsey Martin, Julianna B. Hogan, Miryam Nessim & Donna White

  2. Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX, 77030, USA

    Jan A. Lindsay, Sonora Hudson, Lindsey Martin, Julianna B. Hogan, Miryam Nessim & Donna White

  3. South Central Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center (a virtual center), Houston, TX, USA

    Jan A. Lindsay, Sonora Hudson, Lindsey Martin, Julianna B. Hogan & Miryam Nessim

  4. Psychology/Mental Health, G. V. “Sonny” Montgomery VA Medical Center, 1500 E. Woodrow Wilson Ave, Jackson, MS, 39216, USA

    Lauren Graves & Jeanne Gabriele

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  1. Jan A. Lindsay
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Correspondence to Jan A. Lindsay.

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Lindsay, J.A., Hudson, S., Martin, L. et al. Implementing Video to Home to Increase Access to Evidence-Based Psychotherapy for Rural Veterans. J. technol. behav. sci. 2, 140–148 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s41347-017-0032-4

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