New directions for telemental health research.

Although telemental healthcare has been available for many years, is generally accepted as effective, and has steadily growing numbers of consumers and providers, more and better research in this area needs to be done in order to convince insurers, policymakers, and funding agencies that mental healthcare delivered from a distance is at least as good as that delivered face-to-face. Because there is a wide spectrum of potential mental health disorders that might be encountered, there are significant gaps in telemental health research that need to be addressed before payment for services or funding for large-scale studies of this application can be expected. This white paper will review the current state of telemental health research and will offer suggestions for future directions necessary for telemental research to take in order to firmly establish its effectiveness.