Technology should earn its way into the therapy room

By Cory Polonetsky, VP Product Management & Marketing, Ensora Health

The therapy room is a sanctuary, built on safety, vulnerability, and the promise that what happens there, stays there. It is a place where human connection is what matters most, as therapists offer their clinical expertise and compassion while clients work on healing and personal growth. The therapeutic alliance between therapist and client is forged in this sacred space. This is the beauty of the practice of therapy.

But then there’s the business of therapy. Therapists must document sessions with a careful eye toward insurance requirements. They submit reimbursement claims and appeal denials. They work to keep their schedules full with new and returning clients. And with all of this comes the worry about generating sufficient revenue to cover business expenses and personal costs.

In fact, it’s the business of therapy that has caused widespread therapist burnout. Among the 1,300+ therapists surveyed for Ensora Health’s Future of Therapy Report, 82% said they are experiencing some degree of burnout, with 31% reporting severe burnout.

Almost one in four therapists is considering leaving the profession. But their reasons have little to do with the practice of therapy; they are all about the business of it: feeling underpaid, struggling with insurance, and getting overwhelmed by administrative work.

In comes AI to save the day. Right? That’s what the typical news feed might suggest, with AI’s seemingly endless capabilities to take over mundane and unwanted tasks, doing them better, faster, or cheaper than a human ever could.

Yes, AI is exciting and extremely promising for helping address the drivers of burnout. The Future of Therapy Report shows that 40% of therapists have already used AI for at least one task, and 59% expect to use it by 2030.

But healthcare, and especially mental healthcare, isn’t like any other space. The stakes are higher, the data is more sensitive, and above all, the therapeutic alliance is too sacred for tasks to be simply handed off to AI.

So, where is the bar for when new technology should be welcomed into the therapy room? Here are four tests of whether an AI solution has earned its place. 

1. World-class data security and client privacy

This is the price of admission. For any technology to enter the therapy room – no matter if that room is physical or virtual – it must offer world-class data security and an undoubted commitment to client privacy. HIPAA compliance is the floor, not the goal. True security goes beyond a checklist and builds a foundation of trust. This means no session recordings are stored long-term, and client data is not used to train outside models. Therapists and their clients deserve the peace of mind that comes from knowing their private information is protected by the highest standards.

2. Minimal impact on the clinical encounter

Technology needs to work for therapists, not the other way around. Too often, clinicians are forced to adapt their workflow to clunky, unintuitive software that disrupts the natural flow of a session. The right technology must be unobtrusive, working quietly in the background to free a therapist to conduct the best possible session. While AI may help therapists become more productive, the best AI will focus on making the therapist more present. The goal isn’t just to get notes done faster, but to eliminate the distraction of documentation altogether, allowing for uninterrupted eye contact and deeper human connection.

3. Preservation of clinical intent

When it comes to clinical notes, the details matter immensely. Therapists write notes that reflect the session’s focus and the progress made, with careful attention to nuance and language. They deserve better than having those details wiped out by an AI that summarizes carelessly or strips away context. Look for AI built not only to structure accurate session summaries but also to maintain the therapist’s level of detail and limit inherent bias. The technology should capture the narrative of a session while preserving the clinician’s unique voice and professional judgment, ensuring the final note is a true reflection of their work.

4. Clear ethical guidelines for how AI works

Therapists must always be in control of AI applications, and the technology must offer transparency into what it’s doing and how it’s doing it. In the Future of Therapy Report, therapists said their top AI-related fears – like algorithmic bias – are rooted in a loss of control. To counter this, technology providers must operate with clear and ethical AI principles. Features should have clear on/off switches, and therapists should always have the final say. AI should function as a trusted assistant, not an autonomous decision-maker, empowering the clinician without ever overriding their expertise.

AI must honor what makes mental healthcare unique

The administrative burden on therapists is unsustainable, but the solution cannot come at the cost of the therapeutic alliance. By holding technology to these high standards, we can ensure that innovation serves the needs of both clinicians and clients. The future is not about replacing human connection but about protecting it. When AI is built responsibly, with an unwavering focus on privacy, control, and respect for the clinical process, it can become a powerful ally. It can handle the business of therapy so that therapists can get back to the beautiful and essential practice of it.