Because primary care consultations are so short, most GPs ask just a few questions or they use basic single condition assessment tools that are completely unsuited for conducting thorough mental health assessments. Psychologists too are under increasing pressure to achieve results in fewer sessions and many also use single condition assessment tools or make clinical diagnoses based on limited and incomplete information. Most people with mental health concerns present with multiple conditions at the same time (comorbid or co-existing conditions). A multi-condition assessment tool like Loffty should really be a requirement for practitioners to get the full picture and identify comorbid conditions.

When a GP directs their enquiry into a physical health issue they do so in a comprehensive way by running multiple blood tests – plural. Mental health should be the same, but instead, most practitioners use basic assessment tools like the DASS, K10, PHQ9, Edinburgh Scale or BDI. Use of these tools is like a GP doing a single blood test to confirm their view of one possible condition. It is just as vital for mental health as it is for physical health that the important step of assessment is thorough and comprehensive.

Loffty has the potential to dramatically improve the quality of mental health assessment. According to Professor Matcheri Keshevan, Harvard Medical School Chair of Psychiatry, Loffty is “…the only multi-disorder clinical psychiatric online self-assessment tool developed specifically for family physicians and psychologists that is available today. Its innovative process is a paradigm shift in the way mental health issues are assessed and will significantly improve the quality of diagnosis, treatment and patient management by primary care practitioners. …if implemented widely, it can … provide a global gold standard in early detection and intervention for mental health difficulties.”

Utilise Loffty’s multi-condition assessment technology to ensure a comprehensive assessment and achieve better health outcomes.