Telepsychotherapy. Psychotherapy by telephone, videotelephone, and computer videoconferencing

Telepsychotherapy is defined as psychotherapy conducted by a therapist at a location different from the patient's through bidirectional communication technology supporting real-time interactivity in the audio, audiovisual, or text modalities. Various types of telecommunication equipment are considered. Vignettes of 2 cases treated by means of the AT&T Videophone 2500 are presented. Medicolegal aspects and clinical issues, including ethics, confidentiality, patient selection, and therapy technique, are addressed.