Department of Psychology, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal.
Department of Social work, Catholic University of Portugal, Lisbon, Portugal.
Telemed J E Health. 2021 Aug;27(8):919-928. doi: 10.1089/tmj.2021.0124. Epub 2021 Jun 28.
Social distancing restrictions imposed due to the Novel Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic resulted in a rapid shift in the delivery of psychological interventions from in-person to telehealth. Much of the research on this transition has been conducted with English-speaking mental health providers, leaving a gap in understanding related to how this shift has impacted Spanish-speaking treatment providers. Fifty non-U.S. Spanish-speaking therapists completed a survey related to their use of telecommunication modalities; client population characteristics; professional, ethical, and legal/regulatory issues; and telehealth training and practice. Participants completed the survey at one time point and retrospectively described their use of telehealth both pre-pandemic and during the pandemic. Most of the 50 Spanish-speaking therapists surveyed reported using telepsychology 58% before COVID-19 versus 84% during the COVID-19 pandemic (χ = 5.76, < 0.05). Compared with pre-pandemic, the number of hours therapists spent using telepsychology per week increased significantly for early adopter therapists (those who began using telehealth before the pandemic began) ( = -3.18, = 0.001) and also for late adopter therapists who only began using telehealth during the pandemic ( = -3.74, < 0.001). Many therapists reported equity issues. Most participants also reported ethical and regulatory concerns regarding security/confidentiality or Health Insurance Porability and Accountability Act. The rapid adoption of technology to deliver therapy during COVID-19 has spurred growing pains for Spanish-speaking therapists and their underserved clients, and more research is needed to better understand and improve the therapists' adoption of these technologies with diverse patient populations.
由于 2019 年新型冠状病毒（COVID-19）大流行，实施了社交距离限制，这导致心理干预的提供方式迅速从面对面转变为远程医疗。关于这一转变的大部分研究都是针对以英语为母语的心理健康提供者进行的，这使得人们对西班牙语治疗提供者的相关情况了解甚少。50 名非美国西班牙语治疗师完成了一项与他们使用远程通信模式、客户人群特征、专业、道德和法律/监管问题以及远程医疗培训和实践相关的调查。参与者在一个时间点完成了调查，并回顾性地描述了他们在大流行前和大流行期间使用远程医疗的情况。在接受调查的 50 名西班牙语治疗师中，大多数人报告说在 COVID-19 之前使用远程心理学的比例为 58%，而在 COVID-19 大流行期间使用远程心理学的比例为 84%（χ = 5.76， < 0.05）。与大流行前相比，早期采用者（即在大流行开始前就开始使用远程医疗的治疗师）每周使用远程心理学的时间显著增加（ = -3.18， = 0.001），而仅在大流行期间开始使用远程医疗的后期采用者（ = -3.74， < 0.001）也是如此。许多治疗师报告了公平问题。大多数参与者还报告了与安全/保密性或《健康保险可携性和责任法案》有关的道德和监管问题。在 COVID-19 期间，为提供治疗而迅速采用技术给西班牙语治疗师及其服务不足的客户带来了成长的痛苦，需要进一步研究以更好地了解和改善治疗师对这些技术的采用，以满足不同患者群体的需求。
