Patient Preferences for Patient Portal–Based Telepsychiatry in a Safety Net Hospital Setting During COVID-19: Cross-sectional Study

BACKGROUND: Patient portals are a safe and secure way for patients to connect with providers for video-based telepsychiatry and help to overcome the financial and logistical barriers associated with face-to-face mental health care. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, telepsychiatry has become increasingly important to obtaining mental health care. However, financial and technological barriers, termed the “digital divide,” prevent some patients from accessing the technology needed to use telepsychiatry services. OBJECTIVE: As an extension to a clinic’s outreach project during COVID-19 to improve patient engagement with video-based visits through the hospital’s patient portal among adult behavioral health patients at an urban safety net hospital, we aim to assess patient preference for patient portal–based video visits or telephone-only visits and to identify the demographic variables associated with their preference. METHODS: Patients in an outpatient psychiatry clinic were contacted by phone, and preference for telepsychiatry by phone or video through a patient portal, as well as device preference for video-based visits, were documented. Patient demographic characteristics were collected from the electronic medical record. RESULTS: A total of 128 patients were reached by phone. A total of 79 (61.7%) patients chose video-based visits, and 69.6% (n=55) of these patients preferred to access the patient portal through a smartphone. Older patients were significantly less likely to agree to video-based visits. CONCLUSIONS: Among behavioral health patients at a safety net hospital, there was relatively low engagement with video-based visits through the hospital’s patient portal, particularly among older adults.