Practice guidelines for videoconference-based telepsychiatry in South Africa.

Telepsychiatry, the practice of psychiatry over distance using information and communication technologies is, after teleradiology, the most practiced form of telemedicine in the world. As with any new technology, clinical service, or intervention in medicine, it is prudent to have guidelines for the safe and efficacious use of the technology in clinical practice. Guidelines facilitate best practice and provide both clinicians and patients with a set of standards and procedures that serve to protect their interests. Protection is particularly important when dealing with vulnerable groups.