Improving Work-Life Balance For Providers During The Holidays, And All Year Long

The holiday season can be filled with joy. It can also be exceptionally stressful. Compressed schedules, a more active family and social calendar, a need to run additional errands and looming shipping deadlines create a perfect storm for holiday stress. 

Those who feel it aren’t alone. Statistics indicate that about two in five people feel an increased level of stress during the holiday season, according to the American Psychological Association. For those working in the mental health industry, that stress could be compounded by the fact that they work in a demanding field that is regularly stretched to its limit due to patient demand.

It should come as no surprise that mental health care providers, from licensed clinical social workers to psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners, consistently rank among the most stressful professions — alongside surgeons, CEOs and frontline first responders, according to multiple sources, including salary.com. Add in the additional stressors that come with the holidays, and it’s easy to see why a majority of professionals would choose a working environment that offers better work-life balance.

At innovaTel, we began offering telepsychiatry services years before it was widely adopted by providers across all specialities of healthcare. And when we did, it was out of necessity. The benefits that come along with it , including an improved work-life balance for providers, are an added bonus. 

As remote providers, who become part of clinical teams through partnerships fostered by innovaTel, our licensed clinical social workers, psychiatrists and psychiatric nurse practitioners providing care experience a type of flexibility and work-life balance that isn’t often seen in this line of work. For starters, working in a remote capacity and treating patients in alternate settings saves a tremendous amount of time.

Data cited by Axios suggests that the average American professional who works from home saves more than an hour every day, thanks to the absence of a commute. Bigger metro areas may come with bigger savings, as remote providers avoid rush hour — another stressor — and use that time in other ways. 

By trimming commute times off the front and back end of every day, providers at innovaTel are afforded an opportunity to take back time in their day that was otherwise accounted for previously. In addition, provider careers at innovaTel are shaped with flexibility in mind.

We understand that each provider has unique needs, just as each of our partner organizations do. Because some of  our partner organizations only need part-time support, we’re able to offer part-time career opportunities for providers. And, unlike in a solo practice, our full-time providers receive paid time off and paid holidays. 

Our providers said it best: 

“Having the ability to work from home has allowed me to do what I love while not physically and emotionally overtaxing me,” said Deirdre Fitch, therapist, LSCSW.

“I chose to work with innovaTel because of their flexible work/life balance. I have had the privilege of working from home in other jobs I had when I was younger, so I do know the benefit of being disciplined to work from home. This position allows me to be present for my two adolescents, while also being present for and enjoying my career as a mental health provider,” said Veronica Avedician, LPC (IL) (OR), NCC, THTC.

As an added benefit, innovaTel providers work in a purpose-driven environment, knowing the telebehavioral health care they are providing is improving access to care for patients, meeting patients where they are – both geographically and emotionally – and improving capacity for organizations by reducing wait times and improving speed to quality care for patients in need.

If you’re a provider and you’re looking for an improved work-life balance, learn more about our career opportunities.