In-person and telehealth psychiatry are the same medical visit delivered two ways. You get the same evaluation, the same prescriber, and the same treatment plan. What changes is where you sit, how you get there, and a few practical details around privacy, exams, and certain medications. For most people, either one works. The better question is which one fits your week.
We offer both, so we don’t have a horse in this race. Here is the comparison we walk new patients through.
The side-by-side comparison
| In person, at our Long Beach office | Telehealth, by video anywhere in California | |
|---|---|---|
| What the visit covers | Full psychiatric evaluation, diagnosis, medication plan, follow-ups | The same, with the same provider |
| How well it works | The long-standing standard | Similar symptom improvement across most conditions in a 32-trial meta-analysis |
| Where you need to be | 3646 Long Beach Blvd # 205, in Bixby Knolls. Parking is on site | Any private spot in California with a camera and a signal |
| Travel and time | Add the drive, or the Route 51 bus, to a 60-minute first visit | No travel. Just the visit itself |
| Missed appointments | Higher in the research | Lower. Video visits had 30% higher odds of being completed in a five-year study |
| Privacy | Built in. The door closes | As private as the room you pick |
| Vitals, labs, hands-on checks | Done in the room | Labs ordered near you. Some checks need an office visit |
| ADHD and other controlled medications | No extra rules | Allowed by video without a prior office visit under federal rules that run through December 31, 2026 |
| Insurance | Your plan’s usual rules | State-regulated plans must cover it on the same basis as in person |
| Usually the better fit for | People who focus better face to face, need an exam, or lack a quiet room | People far from Long Beach, on tight schedules, without a car, or who open up more easily at home |
Where the two formats are truly equal
The clinical part doesn’t change. A first visit is a psychiatric evaluation lasting about an hour. Follow-ups are shorter medication management visits. Your provider asks the same questions, weighs the same history, and writes the same prescription in either format. California regulators agree. The Medical Board of California states that the standard of care is the same whether a patient is seen in person or through telehealth.
The research backs that up. A meta-analysis in the British Journal of Psychiatry pooled 32 randomized trials with 3,592 participants across 11 conditions. Telepsychiatry produced symptom improvement similar to face-to-face treatment overall, and for depression the video groups did a little better. One caution from the same paper: results varied by condition, and face-to-face care held an edge for eating disorders. So “similar” is not “identical for everyone,” and your provider should help you weigh it.
Cost is closer than people expect, too. Since 2022, California law has required state-regulated health plans to cover a telehealth visit on the same basis as the same service in person. If you’re paying out of pocket, our self-pay rates are $250 for the 60-minute initial evaluation and $150 for a 30-minute follow-up, and sliding-scale options are available. We don’t accept Medi-Cal at this time.
Where in person wins
You need an exam or a reading. Some medications call for blood pressure checks or blood work. We can order labs near you and review them on video, but if something in your care needs hands on, the office is the right place and we’ll say so.
You don’t have a private room. Telehealth is as private as the space you’re in. The National Institute of Mental Health lists this among the real drawbacks of virtual care: people nearby can see or overhear an appointment. A shared apartment with thin walls is a good reason to come in.
You read people better across a table. Some patients feel more settled in a room with a person than with a laptop. That’s reason enough on its own.
Where telehealth wins
The drive is the problem. Lakewood and Signal Hill are close to us. A freeway trip from the far side of Los Angeles County at rush hour is another matter. Video removes it.
You tend to miss appointments. This one surprised us. A five-year study of 586,266 psychiatric appointments at one academic health system found that telepsychiatry visits had 30% higher odds of being completed than in-person ones. A smaller academic clinic saw its overall no-show rate fall from 18.1% to 15.3% after adding telehealth. A visit that actually happens beats a perfect visit you cancel.
You live outside greater Los Angeles. Our telehealth coverage is the whole state. If you’re in Sacramento, Fresno, or the Bay Area, you can see us by video now. New in-person locations are coming to Northern California, but they aren’t open yet, so please don’t wait for them.
Your medication has extra rules. Many ADHD medications are controlled substances. Under current federal rules, they can be prescribed by video without a prior in-person visit through December 31, 2026, while permanent rules are still being written. Ask us what applies to your prescription before your first visit.
What most people actually do
They mix. A common pattern is a first evaluation in the office, then follow-ups by video once the plan is stable. The reverse happens too. Because the same provider sees you either way, switching doesn’t mean repeating your story to a stranger.
If you’re still torn, our telehealth checklist walks through eight questions, from licensing to lighting, that settle it for most people in five minutes.
What we offer, and where
In person, we see patients at our office in the Bixby Knolls district of Long Beach. Patients come to us from Signal Hill, Lakewood, Bellflower, Seal Beach, and the other cities we serve. Parking is on site and Long Beach Transit’s Route 51 runs the boulevard.
By telehealth, we provide psychiatry services, including evaluation and medication management, to patients anywhere in California, for the conditions we treat, including anxiety, depression, and ADHD. You need to be physically in California during the visit, because your clinician must be licensed where you’re sitting that day.
Both formats are provided by Irine Achuamang, MSN, PMHNP-BC, a board-certified psychiatric nurse practitioner who sees children, adults, and older adults in the office and by video, and who is currently accepting new patients.
A reasonable next step
Pick the format that removes the biggest obstacle between you and a first appointment. If that’s the drive, choose video. If it’s privacy or a needed exam, choose the office. Either way, request a consultation or contact our team and tell us which you’d prefer. You can change your mind at the second visit.
This article is for general education and is not medical advice or a substitute for a clinical evaluation. If you are in crisis, call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. It’s free and available 24/7.