This practice guide explores ways in which telehealthcare can contribute to the support, protection, and quality of life of people with a mental disorder. It includes examples of telehealthcare for people with a mental illness, along with case and service illustrations.

The guide should be of particular interest and value to community psychiatric nurses, mental health officers, and staff such as occupational therapists in community mental health teams. Senior managers should find it useful in informing service planning and helping to raise awareness, expectations and generally advance understanding among service users and carers. As well as providing information about existing telehealthcare services (and the research that has been carried out into their effectiveness), the practice guide encourages readers to wonder why telehealthcare equipment, including SMS messaging (texting), smart phones, the internet and social media are not used more widely to help people recovering from mental illness.