RURAL TELEPSYCHIATRY

Telepsychiatry is the use of telecommunications technology to connect patients and health care providers, permitting effective diagnosis, ed ucation, treatment, consultation, transfer of medical data, research, and other health care activities, Telepsychiatry has been used as a pa rtial solution to the problem of limited psychiatric services for clin ics and hospitals in remote areas or areas undersell-ed by psychiatris ts and other mental health care specialist, In the United States, east ern Oregon's RodeoNet telepsychiatry program and the telemedicine prog ram of the Kansas University Medical Center, which has a psychiatric c omponent, are excellent models, Telepsychiatric applications can be co st-effective, but careful evaluation is needed.