Psychology counselling on the internet

Chartered psychologists Sue Wright and Nadine Field, from Buckinghamshire, have set up PsychologyOnline Ltd, a web-based service designed to give patients consultations, assessment and therapy through the internet.

They say this will cut waiting lists and speed up the time it takes for patients to see a specialist.

There are currently more than 128,000 patients waiting up to an average of nine months to get outpatient psychological treatment, because of a national shortage of qualified psychologists.

Appointments

But with the new internet service, after paying £60 for a session, they can book to see a specialist the next day in 16 problem areas.

Patients who are suicidal or have mental health problems are not suitable to use the internet site.

Sue Wright explained that internet counselling could encourage more people to take the first step towards getting help.

"For some people it is a way of coming to terms with seeing a therapist, before they go face-to-face.

"Some psychologists think 'how could you do that online', but we are not trying to replace face to face consultations.

"But it is quite daunting for people to go and see a psychologist and talk to them face to face.

"Online advice is also good for people in remote areas."

"It is a way of getting services to the people. It is very, very exciting.

She said that the response to their new service had been very encouraging.

"Patients have been very, very positive and we have had one or two lovely emails from people."

She said that some psychologists had been concerned that they would not be able to do their job properly without being able to see their patients face-to-face.

Access

"It is very different. We do not have the eye contact or body language to observe, but there is something about the internet which allows people to get very quickly into the problem."

The service offers advice from 120 Chartered Psychologists, across the globe, which is the equivalent of 10 NHS hospitals without a waiting list.

And it saves the patient any possible embarrassment from visiting a clinic, allowing them to log-on anytime between 8am-11pm.

Sue and Nadine have just received a £70,000 National Endowment for Science Technology and the Arts (NESTA) Invention and Innovation award for their web-site.

Medium

A spokesman for the British Psychological Society, Adrian Skinner, Director of Clinical Psychology for Craven and Harrogate Primary Care Trust, said internet advice offers new opportunities.

"The internet offers a promising new channel for delivering psychotherapy and counselling and some research indicates that treatment can be effective delivered by this modality.

"Future developments should be monitored closely both to ensure quality and highlight the differences between online and face-to-face treatment."