Comprehensive Summary
The paper by Choudhary et al. is a narrative review that examines how digital psychiatry tools can support pharmacotherapy in psychiatric care. The interaction between how these aforementioned tools interact with psychotherapy, patient engagement, and clinical workflows. These tools include synchronous tools and asynchronous tools. Synchronous tools are real-time interactions, such as telepsychiatry or live chat with providers, while asynchronous tools include mobile apps and sensor-based data streams. The review outlines how digital tools can help improve medical adherence, side-effect monitoring, and access to therapy. The paper presents hybrid models, such as digital navigators and digital clinics, as methods for real-world adaptation. These hybrid models allow for the integration of effective psychiatric care relying on integrating real-time telehealth with flexible, scalable digital monitoring.
Outcomes and Implications
By expanding access to psychiatric care, synchronous telehealth helps address shortages of specialists and reduces barriers for patients in underserved areas. Asynchronous tools, such as digital apps and remote monitoring, have the potential to improve patients’ medication adherence, track side effects in real time, and personalize treatment adjustments, leading to enhanced safety and outcomes. These tools could also facilitate earlier interventions and reduce hospitalizations by detecting issues before they escalate. A common theme in many telehealth studies, the new work being done by AI in health serves to be an effective preventative for further complications.