Case Study: South Carolina Department of Mental Health achieves near‑200% treatment adherence boost, fewer hospitalizations and $35M savings with Polycom RealPresence

More than 25,000 telepsychiatry consultations completed to date; state currently saves more than $3,000 per episode of treatment and reduces hospitalization rates for psychiatric patients.

The South Carolina Department of Mental Health (SCDMH), which serves about 100,000 residents statewide, faced long emergency-department waits and multi-day psychiatric hospital stays that delayed care and drove up costs. The agency needed a way to accelerate initial assessments, improve follow-up adherence, and shift more treatment to community-based outpatient care while reducing unnecessary hospitalizations.

SCDMH deployed Polycom RealPresence telepsychiatry—HD desktop systems and mobile practitioner carts—across 21 hospital EDs to enable rapid remote consultations. The program has completed 25,000+ consultations, saved patients an estimated $35 million (more than $3,000 per treatment episode), achieved same-day release recommendations for 51% of consults, and boosted post-hospital outpatient adherence by nearly 200%, all with an intuitive, reliable platform that SCDMH is expanding.

South Carolina Department of Mental Health

Brenda Ratliff

MD, Program Medical Director