Engagement of individuals with serious mental illness in outpatient mental health services and telehealth use during the COVID-19 pandemic.

ABSTRACT: Questions remain regarding whether the transition and continued use of telehealth was associated with changes in treatment engagement among patients with serious mental illness (SMI). Using NYS Medicaid claims, we identified 116,497 individuals with SMI receiving outpatient mental health services from September 1, 2019-February 28, 2021 and a comparison cohort of 101,995 from September 1, 2017-February 28, 2019 to account for unmeasured and seasonal variation. We characterized engagement in three 6-month increments (T₀-T₁-T₂) using clinically meaningful measures of high, partial, low, and none. Subgroup differences were compared, and telehealth users were compared to those with only in-person visits. Engagement, as characterized, was largely maintained duri

SUBMITTER: Bareis N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10842636 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature