The aim of virtual care is to provide person-centered, quality of care that is equitable, safe, and effective.

Virtual care is any clinical interaction between patients and health providers through communication technologies, including video- and/or audio- modalities for providing care. The aim of virtual care is to provide person-centered, quality of care that is equitable, safe, and effective.  Virtual Mental Health care is part of the digital CAMH strategy.

CAMH is a system leader in the implementation and evaluation of virtual mental health care, and in developing educational resources for virtual care.   

The Virtual Mental Health team leverages implementation and evaluation frameworks and approaches to understand the use and outcomes of virtual care. This enables CAMH, as well as providers throughout Ontario, to understand how patients and providers are using and experiencing virtual care, and allows us to understand if care is being delivered optimally, and if there are opportunities for improvement. 

Implementation roadmap for virtual mental health care

Our implementation roadmap (click here for larger version) incorporates the Quintuple Aim – improving population health, enhancing the care experience, reducing costs, addressing clinician burnout, and advancing health equity – and the National Academy of Medicine’s Health Quality domains to set our direction in Virtual Mental Health care.

The Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research, applied to virtual care, guides our implementation and evaluation. This guide includes considerations such as internal and external settings, individuals involved in virtual care, as well as key components of the implementation process - plan, engage, execute and evaluate.  Learn more about the Implementation Roadmap from Virtual Mental Health Care in Rural and Underserved Settings. 

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