Since April 2017, psychotherapists have been required to offer a consultation as a way of simplifying access to out-patient therapy. Our real-world experience shows that currently only a few therapists offer the required services, although a transition regulation is in place until April 2018.
A core component of INSITE's EAP services is professional care management (our Find a Therapist and Find a Consultant services) which provides our clients' employees with quick access to additional treatment options, dramatically reducing the long waiting times. In light of the new legal requirements, we have been looking into the changes that are required when it comes to looking after patients who require urgent care.
What is a mental health consultation?
Since 1 April 2017, psychotherapists have been required to offer mental health consultations. The aim of this consultation is to determine whether there is any indication of a mental illness and whether further professional help is required. The consultation should also provide advice and information and help to clarify each patient's individual needs. An initial diagnosis and relevant recommendations for treatment may also be given, as well as a brief intervention where necessary. The goal is to provide out-patient therapy that is easy to access, fast.1
In practice
So far, putting the legal framework into practice has proven rather tricky. For example, our experience shows that telephone availability for patients (set at 200 minutes per week per therapist/practice) is still below requirements. This is in part due to the fact that there is a much higher need for treatment and therapy and that individual practices do not have sufficient capacities. So while mental health consultations, i.e. conversations of at least 25 minutes to identify whether there is a concrete need for therapy and what sort of treatment is advisable, are being offered, our initial experience is that these sessions are still frequently being used to conduct initial assessments, i.e. to discuss medical history at the start of a treatment in order to learn about a patient's background. This is where the transition period comes into play. This period runs until 31 March 2018 and still allows trial sessions to start without a consultation.
There were still inconsistencies in terms of how services are paid for and information and communication between the therapists and the parties involved, like associations of statutory health physicians or health insurers, was not always sufficient when it came to reporting telephone availability and available capacities, for example.
Our conclusion
Around six months after the roll-out of the mental health consultation, our provisional conclusion is that there are still a few teething problems, with the result that not all patients are getting the short-term support they want and need.
INSITE will therefore continue offering its proven, professional Find a Therapist service as a way of allowing its clients' employees to get full, proper care, fast.
Looking ahead
Wherever relevant changes for simplifying the process of getting therapy are implemented over the coming weeks and months, we will integrate these into our process as quickly as possible.
For example, from April 2018 legislators are planning to make the mental health consultation a requirement for patients before they can begin therapy.
We will also continue to follow the changes to the legal framework and to adapt and optimise our Find a Therapist process. Because at INSITE, our No. 1 priority is providing our clients' employees with the best possible care.
1 https://www.bundesgesundheitsministerium.de/service/begriffe-von-a-z/p/psychotherapeutische-sprechstunde.html
