Abstract Body

India is a country with a huge shortage of mental health professionals with only 0.75 psychiatrists per 100,000 population. Also, as most of the available doctors are present only in urban areas, people who stay in rural areas had to travel long distances to meet them. As a result, there had been a huge treatment gap ranging from 70% to 92% for common mental disorders. While earlier, Telepsychiatry services in India was provided only by few organizations, with the advent of COVID-19 pandemic and the associated lockdown, and the timely release of Telemedicine guidelines and Telepsychiatry guidelines, many psychiatrists started implementing Telepsychiatry in their clinical practice. This had provided convenience for the patients as well as service providers, reduced travel time for the patients, reduced cost, and provision of quality psychiatric care even to patients who were staying in far away places. Even after the COVID-19 pandemic is over, many psychiatrists have been continuing to provide services through Telepsychiatry. This has led to a revolutionary change in the way psychiatrists see the patient.