Main image courtesy of VeryWell Health. 

Mental health has been brought more to the forefront in the past few years, especially after the devastating effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to some studies, as much as 26% of Americans have a mental health diagnosis, which is a large amount of people. People are encouraged to seek out assistance for their mental health from professionals, but can AI help as well? This article will cover:

• How mental health professionals are using AI
• The benefits of using AI in mental health
• Concerns with AI in mental health

Mental health professionals can assist folks with a variety of issues, but some clinicians may find that AI is more helpful than others. Just like in the medical field, AI has made a big impact already in the mental health sphere, but it is important to note that it is not without limitations. 

How mental health professionals are using AI 

AI is already a part of the mental health profession

Just like in the fields of neurology and orthopedics, AI is helping clinicians who work in the mental health field. While they specialize in another part of medicine, mental health providers also want to ensure the best possible care for their patients. Whether they’re counselors or therapists working in a hospital or private practice, AI is helping mental health patients in a variety of ways. 

AI for clerical help

When clinicians see patients, they want to make sure they’re entirely present for the session. This is difficult to do when they’re busy taking notes or adding to the patient’s EHR. A lot of mental health providers have instead started to take advantage of using ambient AI medical scribes (like Playback Health). These digital applications take away the time consuming yet crucial clerical task of taking notes and adding additional information to the patient’s record. AI scribes can listen to the conversation and transcribe the pertinent information while the clinician can devote their attention solely to their patient.

These scribes can also take dictation from the provider to add information to the file, and they can streamline the workflow process for an office—helping with everything from billing to follow up appointments.

With almost half of U.S. licensed psychologists feeling burned out in 2022 (46%), that number is surely only rising. Using AI to help take some items off their plate can help clinicians feel less burned out, so they can focus more of their time on their patients. 

Chatbots and apps 

One of the first ways someone may engage with mental health assistance is with a chatbot that allows them to open up about what they’re experiencing. This is a great way for someone who is nervous to engage with a therapist, or wants to see if seeking out a mental health provider is right for them. They can text the chatbots anytime, which have been programmed to pick up on keywords that would trigger a connection with a human specialist. 

These AI programs can help users through different issues they’ve been experiencing, and can even suggest some ways to cope with concerns until they’re able to contact a human counselor. 

Chatbot drawback

One of the drawbacks of chatbots is the potential for vulnerable people making emotional connections to AI and other apps. Mental health expert Dr. Jodi Halpern has issues with these apps because tech companies are marketing these bots as AI therapists, which can make people dealing with mental health issues extremely reliant on them. 

Wearables 

While lots of folks already use wearables to track their heart rate and how many steps they’ve gone in a day, there are also wearables that can track sleeping patterns, users’ mood, and cognitive patterns. This can then be shared or viewed by the patient’s mental health provider to determine if their current treatment plan is working, or needs adjustment.

Additionally there are apps that can share anonymous data collected regarding mental health that can be shared with employers so they’re aware of how their workforce is doing. This not only raises awareness for how important mental health is, but so that environments or policies can be adjusted.

Better diagnosis and personalized treatment plans

While it’s essential that a mental health professional speaks with the patient, they can also rely on AI to help with diagnosis. AI can run through the patient’s medical information, personal history, and even forms filled out to determine some suggestions for the provider. They can use this information to confirm or even change their diagnosis. When people are more accurately diagnosed, then their treatment plans are more personalized and can offer support right away.

Not everyone responds to or needs medication on top of CBT (cognitive behavioral therapy), and based on sifting through data, AI can determine if a patient is more likely to respond to one over the other, or would benefit from both. The clinician can also suggest coping strategies and exercises more likely to make a difference based on a patient by patient basis. Customized treatment plans can lead to better outcomes. 

Helping patients comply

Another way in which mental health professionals are using AI is to help their patients comply with treatment. Whether that’s remembering to take their medications, or showing up for therapy sessions, if they’re not complying, they may not get the help that they need. Using automated phone calls or texts to help patients stay on track is a great way to use AI to ensure they’re complying with their treatment. 

How can AI help therapists?

As we’ve seen, AI can assist mental health professionals in a variety of ways, and ensure their patients receive the care they need. Lots of clinicians are excited to have AI on board to help with administrative tasks and alleviate some of the workflow problems they can encounter with 

organizing information and billing. 

However, AI can also help with:

• Ensuring accurate notes are taken
• Good record keeping
• Analyzing patterns and trends of patients over time
• Providing feedback based on patient data for ways to improve

What are the benefits of AI in mental health?

There are a lot of ways that AI is helping in the mental health field

AI is already being used in a lot of ways in the mental health field, and that’s great news for both providers and patients. There are a lot of benefits to including more AI into your private practice or in other healthcare facilities.

• Easier for early detection and diagnosis. Early detection is ideal for almost any medical field, including mental health. One of the best ways to determine a diagnosis is for a clinician to observe the patient over time, take note of behaviors and symptoms, and then make a diagnosis. AI can fast track this process in a similar way to how it can quickly read diagnostic images for anomalies. Providers can task AI with sifting through patient data and comparing it to large quantities of other patient data to determine the likelihood of a diagnosis.

AI is already very accurate at reading images like x-rays and scans, and it can be used in a similar way when attempting to diagnose a mental health issue. Earlier detection means that the clinician can create a customized treatment plan sooner.

• Very accessible for patients. AIs like chatbots and apps are very accessible, and while they should not replace a licensed therapist, they are a good way to reach those who might otherwise be left behind. There are a lot of folks who simply cannot get the mental health they need due to a variety of barriers like not having therapists in their area, or they are afraid of being stigmatized. Potential patients can find mental health chat bots online that can offer basic answers to questions, offer potential exercises, or direct them to a human clinician that they can at least speak to over the phone. 

A lot of these applications are programmed to recognize trigger words so that a human can be notified if help is needed immediately. Having at least the AI to open the door to mental health support is a big step forward.

• Can help prevent burnout in providers. Letting AI take over clerical and organizing tasks is a great way to reduce provider burnout. They are already dealing with a higher number of patients who need care, so clinicians shouldn’t have to worry about adding documentation to files or ensuring that insurance companies are billed correctly. AI is also great at monitoring patient journeys and can send automated texts or calls to remind patients about appointments or other important information. AI can easily track the progress of patients and recognize patterns in case treatment needs to be altered.

• Cost effective. There are many people that simply cannot afford to see a provider until their mental health concern has escalated. Knowing that there’s an easy way to access a (typically) free application that can answer questions and get someone on the right path is a very cost effective way to reach people. Although there are lots of therapists and counselors that offer services on sliding scales, some people who need help might not know how to access that. 

AI is also cost effective for providers because it can help automate parts of the daily workflow. Having an application that can accurately and efficiently transcribe daily patient notes not only frees up time at the end of the day, but it also allows the clinician to be present without the distraction of constantly writing during a session. 

• Automating support. AI chatbots and apps can provide support 24/7 to patients who may just need some questions answered, or are looking for basic exercises or coping mechanisms to help them through an issue. Not only are these applications accessible no matter where in the world someone is, but they do not have a schedule or timetable to follow. 

• Helping patients self-manage. Another great way that AI is assisting in mental health is with improved self-management. Wearable AI can track patients’ patterns, whether that’s with physical conditions like sleep and heart rate, or alerting them to something potentially triggering. It can also keep them informed of their particular mental health condition, as well as any potential ways they can become more involved in managing it. 

Are there drawbacks to using AI for mental health?

AI offers benefits to how mental health professionals can further assist their patients, but it still has drawbacks that should be discussed.

• Patient privacy is essential with mental health, like all medical conditions, and clinicians want to know how their patients’ data will be used and if/where it will be stored. Confidentiality must be prioritized.
• The potential for bias is always present when AI is using data to learn, as not all demographics have equal access to mental health help. This can skew diagnoses or lead to unequal care.
• Providers may be concerned about patients being emotionally reliant on AI apps or chatbots.
• AI is not meant to replace clinicians and therapists, but it is there to assist them. Creating those boundaries is crucial. 

More mental health professionals are taking advantage of AI

If you’re a mental health professional looking to include AI in your everyday work, then consider Playback Health’s ambient medical scribe. Designed to help automate notes, your patients’ journey, and more, this is the mental health AI assistant that can help those in the mental health field.