The consistency of neuropsychological assessments performed via telecommunication and face to face

Previous studies have suggested that cognitive assessments of adult psychia tric patients can be carried out as reliably via teleconsultation as they c an face to face. However, the designs of these studies have often been less than satisfactory. The present study used videoconferencing at 128 kbit/s for the cognitive assessment of individuals with a history of alcohol abuse . Twenty-seven participants were given a range of assessments with two equi valent forms. One of the forms was given via videoconferencing and the othe r face to face. All participants were assessed using both media and the ord er of presentation was balanced across participants. Aspects of participant satisfaction with teleconsultations were also assessed, on 10-point scales . The teleconsultations were significantly longer (mean 40.7 min, SD 6.4) t han the face-to-face sessions (mean 33.0 min, SD 5.3). For most of the outc ome measures, cognitive assessment via teleconsultation produced similar re sults to face-to-face assessment. Most participants expressed high overall satisfaction with the teleconsultation (mean rating 8.2). The average ratin gs for the sound quality (mean 7.6) and visual quality of the equipment (me an 7.9) were also high. The findings imply that it is not necessary for pat ients and neuropsychologists to be present at the same location for cogniti ve assessments to be carried out.