The Interstate Medical Licensure Compact (IMLC) allows physicians from 43 different Medical and Osteopathic boards to practice medicine across state lines. Interstate compacts exist so that governing agencies from different states or jurisdictions are able to define an agreement which allows for members of their respective regions to operate under a mutual set of regulations.
The Nursing Licensure Compact (NLC) allows nurses to have one license to practice in multiple states. An interstate compact allows multiple states to join together and uniformly address common issues and establish guidelines that cross state boundaries to maintain regularity between governing agencies.
The Psychological Interjurisdictional Compact (PSYPACT) was approved in 2015 by the Association of State and Provincial Psychology Board (ASPPB – the alliance of psychology boards in US and Canada). By definition, a compact is an interstate agreement allowing states to enact legislation and enter a contract for a specific, limited purpose or to address a particular policy issue. One of the greatest advantages to any interstate compact is establishing a solution that uniformly addresses multi-state issues.
At Telehealth Certification Institute we often hear the following questions:
- What is the difference between a certification, credential, certificate, accreditation, or license?
- Which of these is the best for me to show my qualification, and which is a better predictor of competence?
- Does my state allow me to provide telemental health services?
- Are the Continuing Education (CE) hours you provide accepted in my state?
In this video our CEO, Raymond Barrett, interviews Michelle Inauen LPC MFT who provides counseling by both video and phone. Michelle Inauen shares how she got started in distance counseling, the services she offers to individuals, couples and families. Michelle also provides some advice to other clinicians looking to get started in providing virtual counseling.
The Florida legislature has passed Chapter 2019-137, Laws of Florida. Signed into law by the governor and effective July 1, 2019, Chapter 2019-137 clarifies the definitions for health care providers who use or plan on using telehealth services in Florida, as well as the steps needed to provide ethical, legal and competent services within the state. The full text of Chapter 2019-137 can be downloaded on the home page http://www.flhealthsource.gov/telehealth/.
It is now mandatory for practitioners who are licensed out-of-state and do NOT hold an additional Florida license to be registered with the state in order to perform telehealth services for patients located in Florida. (Licensed Florida providers are already allowed to practice telehealth with patients they would be able to see face-to-face.)
Finding the right therapist for yourself or someone else can be challenging for anyone. However, finding a psychotherapist for someone who is living abroad can be even more difficult. To help provide some guidance with this task, our CEO, Raymond Barrett, interviewed Josh Sandoz, LMHC, who is curator of the International Therapist Directory.
Presenting at the Licensed Professional Counseling Association of North Carolina (LPCANC) this year was a new experience for us. One of our alumni, Tanya Guinn, LPC, both a telemental health provider in North Carolina and a member of the LPCANC, took initiative with the idea of VIRTUALLY co-presenting on TeleMental Health at the LPCANC Conference with our CEO, Raymond Barrett.
The use of mobile devices and mobile apps have become the norm. Mobile apps solve people's need for purchases, information, connection, health and nutrition tracking, and mental health. Deciding which mobile app to use for a specific mental health need, such as managing depression, can be difficult. There are thousands of apps to choose from and the information available on the apps’ sales pages are often not adequate to make an informed decision.
Clinicians need to be competent at reviewing apps before recommending them to clients. Individuals seeking to utilize apps also need guidance in making a smart decision. Professional organizations have carefully created guidelines for evaluating apps for mental health. For example Raymond Barrett, our CEO, as a member of the American Telemedicine Association has been on an ATA task force for establishing tool for evaluating mobile apps for depression.
JAMIA recently published their study on the US Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) initiative to bring telehealth to Veterans in serious need of healthcare and with barriers to accessible care. Eighty-six VA facilities provided tablets with telehealth capabilities to 6,745 patients.
