Telemedicine enables providers to deploy service to a crisis area within hours and in some cases minutes after a disaster or incident.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (PRWEB) November 19, 2018
Let’s Talk Interactive, a leading provider of customizable telehealth solutions, announced this week that they have donated six interactive dashboards to Big Bend Community Based Care (BBCBC), a Northwest Florida network management agency for child welfare and behavioral health services. The dashboards will enable BBCBC to provide much needed care to those affected by Hurricane Michael.
The dashboards will be available to BBCBC free of charge for a period of ninety days. During this time, providers in the hurricane-affected area will be able to offer counseling services through the Let’s Talk Interactive online platform.
“We are excited to be in a position to deliver not only HIPAA compliant virtual capabilities, but also a rapid response behavioral health care system. This will enable providers to deploy service to a crisis area within hours and in some cases minutes after a disaster or incident,” said Arthur Cooksey, Founder of Let’s Talk Interactive, Inc. “The more providers who are trained and licensed in the proper deployment of services and HIPAA compliant utilization of this technology, the better equipped an area is to help all citizens.”
Hurricane Michael was the third most intense Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in the contiguous United States and the first storm of its magnitude to make landfall in the Northeast Gulf Coast. After making landfall near Mexico Beach on the Florida Panhandle on October 10th, 2018, the category 4 storm caused massive destruction.
Days after the hurricane, Mike Watkins, Executive Director of BBCBC, reached out to both his staff and providers for ways to overcome the challenges caused by the storm. Without buildings, and staff experiencing homelessness, possible solutions were few and far between. It was at this time that Mike remembered a grant application to expand telehealth adoption, which would allow BBCBC to improve access to substance abuse and mental health treatment services.
Three existing providers, DISC Village, CARE, and Life Management Center (LMC), were asked to select six counselors to participate in the pilot program. DISC Village staff training began on October 30th, 2018 and two LMC Community Action Teams were trained on November 1st, 2018. Two additional substance use disorder counselors from CARE will be trained as soon as Internet connection and facilities have been restored. This training is expected to take place before November 15th, 2018.
“The capability of providing services to our clients during this time of tragedy has been a blessing to us all. I am so grateful for the donation by the Let’s Talk Interactive team. These accounts open up numerous doors for our staff to reach out to those in need,” said Matt Robinson of DISC Village.
About Big Bend Community Based Care
Big Bend Community Based Care provides community-based child welfare services to twelve Northwest Florida counties. BBCBC is also a state-contracted Managing Entity provider of substance abuse and mental health (SAMH) services in Florida’s Northwest Region. BBCBC is the only community-based care organization designated by the state of Florida to also serve as a Managing Entity (payer). This allows BBCBC to pay for services for the entire family.
About Let’s Talk Interactive, Inc.
Let’s Talk Interactive, Inc. provides behavioral health professionals with cutting-edge HIPPAA-compliant video conferencing software, network solutions, virtual clinics, and safe and secure online video conferencing capabilities through their Let’s Talk Counseling website. The company’s telemedicine solutions enable providers to offer care at any time, from any location in the world. This makes it possible for providers to reach more clients and improve the level of care they are able to provide.
For more information about Let’s Talk Interactive, please visit their website at https://letstalkinteractive.com.