Mentavi Analysis at 2026 NEI Fall Congress: Online Behavioral Health Evaluations Reach ZIP Codes With No Psychiatrists

GRAND RAPIDS, MI, UNITED STATES, November 3, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Key Takeaways
– Mentavi will present a descriptive analysis of more than 50,000 behavioral health evaluations at the 2026 NEI Fall Congress Scientific Poster Session, mapping them against psychiatrist listings in a federal provider registry by ZIP code.
– Nearly half of the provider-served ZIP codes in the analysis (46.9%) had no listed psychiatrist, and roughly one-third of evaluations came from those areas.
– What is reaching those ZIP codes is the Mentavi Mental Health Diagnostic Evaluation reviewed by a doctorate-level licensed psychologist, not a screening questionnaire.

The Story
Mentavi Health, an evidence-based telehealth company specializing in mental health care and treatment, will present during the Scientific Poster Session at the 2026 NEI Fall Congress, the Neuroscience Education Institute’s annual meeting for mental health professionals. The poster, “Asynchronous Behavioral Health Diagnostic Evaluations Reach Psychiatric-Shortage ZIP Codes: A Descriptive Analysis of 50,642 Evaluations Against National Provider Supply,” will be presented Saturday, November 7, from 2:40–3:40 p.m. MT in the Rocky Mountain Ballroom at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

The shortage itself is well documented. About 137 million Americans, 40% of the U.S. population, live in a federally designated Mental Health Professional Shortage Area, according to HRSA’s State of the Behavioral Health Workforce, 2025 brief. Of the 61.5 million U.S. adults with any mental illness in 2024, nearly half (about 29.5 million) did not receive mental health treatment in the past year, according to SAMHSA’s 2024 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.

What those figures don’t show is where the gap falls, or where online evaluations are being completed relative to it. Mentavi’s analysis took up that question at the ZIP code level, matching the locations where online, self-administered evaluations were completed against psychiatrist listings in the federal National Plan and Provider Enumeration System (NPPES) registry as of June 2026. A ZIP code with no listed psychiatrist was classified as a psychiatric desert, a term defined for this analysis.

Among 49,203 evaluations completed in ZIP codes with at least one listed behavioral health provider, roughly one-third (16,033 evaluations) came from psychiatric-desert ZIP codes. Those ZIP codes accounted for 46.9% of all provider-served ZIP codes in the analysis. Evaluations in the analysis were completed in 863 three-digit ZIP areas across all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

“Asynchronous evaluations can reach people traditional telehealth may not,” said Michelle Ripper-Lewis, BSN, Executive Advisor of Clinical Quality and Transformation at Mentavi Health and the presenting author on the poster. “Without requiring a scheduled, real-time appointment or high-speed broadband connection, they can extend access to areas where local psychiatrists aren’t available. About one in three evaluations came from ZIP codes with no local psychiatrist.”

The poster’s co-author, Mentavi Chief Medical Officer, Barry K. Herman, MD, MMM, notes that what was delivered into those ZIP codes is what gives the finding its meaning. The Mentavi Mental Health Diagnostic Evaluation is clinically validated to support the diagnosis of ADHD in adults, published in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, and evaluations are reviewed by a doctorate-level licensed psychologist in the patient’s state. Treatment, when warranted by diagnosis, is available to adults (18+) in most U.S. states.

“The access advantage is important, but so is the rigor behind the evaluation,” said Dr. Herman. “Our asynchronous ADHD evaluation has been validated against an in-person clinical interview, giving clinicians a structured, evidence-based approach to assessment without requiring a real-time appointment. We’re now applying that same validation approach to anxiety and depression.”

Q&A for Context

What did the analysis measure?
Geography. The cohort was 50,642 evaluations completed on or after January 30, 2025 under current data-use consent, of which 50,632 carried a valid ZIP code. The authors excluded a further 1,429 from ZIP codes where the registry listed no behavioral health provider of any kind, treating those as likely registry or geocoding errors rather than true deserts. That left 49,203 as the base for the one-third figure. The cohort included adults (18+) across all conditions assessed.

Why does this matter for clinicians at the NEI Fall Congress?
The analysis gives them a ZIP-level picture of where online diagnostic evaluations are being completed relative to listed psychiatrists, and a basis for considering where the diagnostic step fits into their own referral pathways.

What happens next?
The abstract will be available in the NEI Virtual Poster Library at nei.global/vsp. The poster will be on display in the Rocky Mountain Ballroom starting Friday, November 6, with Ripper-Lewis at the board for the Scientific Poster Session on Saturday, November 7, from 2:40–3:40 p.m. MT. Attendees can review the figures and discuss the methodology with the presenting author during the session.

The Mentavi Mental Health Diagnostic Evaluation is clinically validated to support the diagnosis of ADHD in adults. Peer-reviewed research was published in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry. Due to the high prevalence of ADHD in the validation study sample, these results have not yet been generalized to a broader clinical setting. Evaluation results alone are not a guarantee of any specific treatment, medication or therapy.

Treatment services are available in most U.S. states for adults (18+). Availability varies by service, state, and clinician capacity.

About Mentavi Health
Founded in 2018 as ADHD Online, and recognized as part of Michigan Celebrates Small Business’s 2022 “50 Companies to Watch” cohort, Mentavi Health provides evidence-based online mental health care in most U.S. states, for adults (18+), guided by rigorous clinical and regulatory standards. Its Diagnostic Evaluation is clinically validated for the diagnosis of ADHD in adults against an in-person clinical interview, with results published in The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry (2025), and is also used by licensed clinicians to support assessment of other mental health conditions, including anxiety and depression. Mentavi delivers affordable, evidence-based care, offering diagnostic evaluations and access to additional care options delivered by licensed clinicians. Guided by clinical rigor, accessibility, and trust, Mentavi helps adults connect to evidence-based mental health care. Availability varies by state. Learn more at mentavi.com.

Danielle Fox
Interdependence
+1 360-509-9527
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