Pilot Studies of Telemedicine for Patients With Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder

Baer, Lee PhD
Cukor, Peter PhD
Jenike, Michael A. MD
Leahy, Linda BS
O'Laughlen, John MBA
Coyle, Joseph T. MD

Received Aug. 22, 1994; revision received Nov. 28, 1994; accepted Jan. 27, 1995. From the Consolidated Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston. Address reprint requests to Dr. Baer, CNY-9, Massachusetts General Hospital, Charlestown, MA 02129.
Video equipment used in this study was obtained with the assistance of Picture Tel Corp., Danvers, Mass.
The authors thank Daniel Miley for assistance in carrying out this project.

American Journal of Psychiatry 152(9):p 1383-1385, September 1995.

Objective

Remote video psychiatric assessment holds promise for providing expert consultation to underserved areas. The authors assessed the reliability of rating scales administered in person and over video to patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder. Method: Rating scales for obsessive-compulsive, depressive, and anxiety symptoms were administered in person (N equals 16) and by means of narrow-bandwidth video transmission over one digital telephone line (N equals 10). Interrater reliability was determined for each condition; for the video interviews one rater sat at the local site in front of the videoconsulting apparatus and asked the questions, and the patient and the second rater sat at the remote site. Results: Reliability was excellent in both conditions, and there was no degradation in reliability when the assessment was conducted over video. Conclusions: Telemedicine resulted in near-perfect interrater agreement on rating scale scores. Its use for other disorders and for more in-depth assessments should be explored.

(Am J Psychiatry 1995; 152:1383-1385)