MatchedTherapists.com Finds the Solution to the Behavioral Health Crisis

The COVID-19 pandemic increased the number of people suffering from behavioral health issues. MatchedTherapists.com has addressed how to find effective help.

FRAMINGHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, USA, July 15, 2021 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The COVID-19 pandemic increased the number of people suffering from behavioral health issues (e.g., anxiety, depression, substance misuse), and widened the already large gap between consumer demand and the limited supply of therapists. As alarming, many people who are treated either do not improve or get worse, in part because of being mismatched to their provider.

A powerful solution launches today at www.MatchedTherapists.com, which is based on a major scientific breakthrough published in JAMA Psychiatry last month by lead author and University of Massachusetts Amherst professor, Michael Constantino, Ph.D. As the first double-blind randomized trial of its kind, the study showed that patients intentionally assigned to therapists with track records of success in treating patients’ specific concerns had significantly better treatment results than patients assigned through usual means, such as therapist availability and therapist self-determined specialties (which the study found to be an unreliable substitute for actual outcome data).

“To get such a robust effect by simply eliminating poorly matched providers from each patient’s list of treatment options is a major boon to best practices,” says Constantino. The web-based match service will capitalize on this effect.

With a free, public-service option, consumers can take a 5-7-minute self-assessment of their levels of depression, anxiety, and ten other dimensions of health, and then find a list of exceptionally well-matched therapists who are actively seeking referrals, and who confer a clear advantage over mismatched therapists for helping patients return to normal health and maintain their gains.

“To pair patients and therapists based on performance data is nothing short of revolutionary,” says co-author, Dr. David R. Kraus, who has spent the past thirty years researching and developing the solution that launches to the public today. “Virtually every therapist has certain consumers for whom they deliver exceptional results. Once we identify their strengths scientifically, we can provide them referrals in a way that maximizes such success.”

As co-investigator, James Boswell, Ph.D., at the University at Albany, SUNY states, “Without using patient-reported outcome data, therapists lack insight into their true strengths and weaknesses, as we know that their self-perceived skills are often inaccurate or overestimated.”

With telehealth options, most consumers using www.MatchedTherapists.com will be able to find a therapist with a good-to-very good Paired-on-Outcome-Data Grade (POD Grade^®) within the next few months. As the website continues to populate with providers, matching will become even more expeditious. Upgraded accounts for consumers only cost $1-2/month (allowing them to store and track their self-assessments); and providers pay as little as $10/month to track their outcomes, identify their strengths, and get listed on the website.

From the worried well who are willing to pay out-of-pocket to those struggling with serious issues and need inpatient care, this system will transform how consumers find an exceptional therapist or program just for them. “It’s what personalized medicine is all about,” says Dr. Kraus.

Headquartered in Framingham MA, Outcome Referrals, Inc. is dedicated to using clinical assessments and artificial intelligence to make behavioral healthcare work for everyone. For interviews or further comment, please contact: Andre Godbout, (agodbout@outcomereferrals.com); 508-861-2866.

Andre Godbout
Outcome Referrals, Inc.
+1 508-861-2866
agodbout@outcomereferrals.com
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