Are online sessions as effective as in-person sessions?
At Rethink Health we work with clients online. We believe this offers our clients several benefits. We are able to offer you a service, wherever you are based. We are able to offer a more flexible service, depending on your availability and preferred time. You no longer need to travel to sessions, saving time for more meaningful activity. We can also work efficiently by sharing electronic documents and diagrams that often provide important information and treatment strategies. While we understand that online working may not be for everyone, we would like to assure you that sessions delivered online are just as effective as in-person sessions.
Meta-analyses are the gold standard of scientific research. They combine results from multiple scientific studies which address the same research question to determine overall trends. A recent meta-analysis combined the results of 57 studies published over the last 20 years and found that online psychology sessions are equally effective in treating a range of psychological health problems as face-to-face sessions (Batastini et al., 2021). Interestingly, this study also found that for people with psychological health difficulties associated with medical problems, online videoconference sessions may achieve even better outcomes than in-person interventions, perhaps because people with injuries or physical limitations could find it difficult to travel to clinics. These findings add to existing literature demonstrating that online psychological interventions for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (Sijbrandij et al., 2016) and workplace stress in senior managers (Persson Asplund et al., 2018) are effective.
We encourage you to try online psychology sessions. We have never met anyone who was put off continuing with sessions, having had an initial session online.
Here is some feedback from discharged patients:
‘I have found the sessions on Skype great as you are able to receive the excellent support but in the comfort of your own space. Matt has given me a great set of tools and methods which I am now using all the time, and which have changed my perspectives on many areas of my life for the better.’
‘Communication and therapy effectiveness were not at all hampered by the fact that it was done over zoom - in fact it made the sessions very convenient.’
‘Communicating on Zoom worked well. I enjoyed the convenience of it, making notes on my PC as we chatted. I would recommend Matthew wholeheartedly, and zoom also worked out great for me.’
References
Batastini, A. B., Paprzycki, P., Jones, A. C. T., & MacLean, N. (2021). Are videoconferenced mental and behavioral health services just as good as in-person? A meta-analysis of a fast-growing practice. In Clinical Psychology Review (Vol. 83). Elsevier Inc. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2020.101944
Persson Asplund, R., Dagöö, J., Fjellström, I., Niemi, L., Hansson, K., Zeraati, F., Ziuzina, M., Geraedts, A., Ljótsson, B., Carlbring, P., & Andersson, G. (2018). Internet-based stress management for distressed managers: results from a randomised controlled trial. Occupational and Environmental Medicine, 75(2). https://doi.org/10.1136/oemed-2017-104458
Sijbrandij, M., Kunovski, I., & Cuijpers, P. (2016). Effectiveness of internet-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Depression and Anxiety, 33 (9). https://doi.org/10.1002/da.22533
