As the CDC points out, it’s common for individuals’ stress levels to rise during an infectious disease outbreak. Fear and anxiety about COVID-19 can be overwhelming, especially when most of the population is faced with unknowns. Resources are available to help people cope, and some companies are stepping up to do their part—many from North Texas.
Southlake-based SmartCounseling, a site for online licensed therapists, has introduced a new flexible tech platform, the Smart Practice Virtual Suite, for mental healthcare professionals to be able to expand their services online quickly during the coronavirus pandemic. That way, clients can be offered mental health therapy through messaging, audio, and video anytime, anywhere.
The platform is widely available for all providers. Therapists can take on clients as independent contractors, and organizations are able to use it with SmartCounseling clinicians, their own, or both. Orgs can also provide branded behavioral health services, if needed.
Everything on SmartCounseling is private and confidential, and insurance coverage for the telehealth service can vary. But, in the wake of COVID-19, SmartCounseling said it has been working to reduce the cost burden mental health services can have on individuals. Through June 12, counseling will be 40 percent off (code CALM40) for those in need of mental health care.
The new launch is an extension of SmartCounseling’s other offerings. The company’s AI-based technology, self-guided learning services, and high quality coaches and clinicians intend to expand the accessibility of behavioral health services to those who need it.
SmartCounseling was founded by Catherine Tito, a licensed professional counselor who saw through her own practice that many individuals couldn’t benefit from counseling because they weren’t able to be there in person. She also noticed that many counselors were constrained by the number of clients they could see day-by-day. She had grown up with a parent with mental health challenges, and cared for the cause.
So SmartCounseling was created to meet the growing demand for targeted behavioral health services not met by the in-office model. Most recently, the company was one of five honorees during DigitalNow’s 20th annual Tech Showcase Awards. The recognition went to “companies with leading-edge technologies changing lives, professions, and industries.”
SmartCounseling is also a TechFW client.
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