Major depression rates soared 31 percent among millennials from 2014 to 2017 according to The Health of Millennials report, which also noted increase in substance-use disorders among millennials.

Patients in the 35 and under demographic who wouldn’t otherwise seek help for behavioral health issue are now using telehealth or are interested to do so.

According to a recent survey, 40 percent of individuals born between 1981 and 1996 would regularly use telehealth for behavioral health management. Also, millennials are nearly three times as likely to do a video visit with doctors compared with other demographics.

An Accenture 2019 Digital Health Survey reveals that 24 percent of Gen Z individuals and 13 percent of millennials are dissatisfied with the convenience or location of care compared with 8 percent of Gen Xers and 4 percent of baby boomers.

This implies that youngsters are more likely to find it inconvenient to travel to see a therapist of choice in preferred hours. For youngsters, telehealth can help eliminating stigmas attached to seeking behavioral health services.

Challenges for behavioral health providers:

Therapists have to determine the kind of virtual services that can be offered. They should know which types of patient encounters are appropriate in an in-person setting and how would it change the scope of practice?

For therapists working on college campuses or with patients in their late teens to mid-twenties, there are administrative restrictions on telehealth encounters. In some states or cities insurance providers put certain limitations or there is a lack of parity between in-person and remote consultations.

For psychologist whose clientele are busy professionals with fewer administrative obstacles, expanding into virtual care may be easier as offering extended hours on evenings and weekends.

Also, establishing trust upfront cannot be underestimated. Providers should ensure patients that they will receive same care that they would in person. Virtual tours of the office to show that they are alone can comfort the patients who are skeptical about telehealth consultation.

In-person visits aren’t going anytime soon, but behavioral telehealth is bound to surge, as youngster seek convenient ways to consult providers to address their mental health issues. Providers should put in more thought to the overall telehealth experience, so that the experience will be better for the future generations as well.