In a world where technology is more ever-present than ever, and has been ingrained into every facet of our lives, we may wonder – how does this impact health? Often, we hear about the detrimental impact of technology like social media on mental health, or how new software has made hospitals more efficient. But technology itself is also an efficient way to deliver healthcare. Telehealth, or health care services provided using audio and video technology (e.g. online appointments, consultation via video chat), has become incredibly important in our post-COVID world. Telehealth services are especially useful for rural and remote populations, and others who have difficulty accessing in-person care.
Some of the benefits of telehealth include that they are efficient, and cost-effective both for patients and practitioners. For example, telehealth can provide access to resources and care to patients in remote regions who otherwise may not be able to access it. Patients who have an in-person practitioner can also benefit — telehealth allows them to communicate with their provider about issues without needing to wait for an in-person appointment, and has resulted in decreased medication misuse, unnecessary emergency room department visits, and prolonged hospitalizations. Both patients and providers report better access to care, more convenience, and reduced stress with telehealth, but barriers to widespread and maximally efficient telehealth utilization remain.
Barriers to telehealth include technical difficulties, especially for older populations, confidentiality and prescription issues, and legal and regulatory hurdles. For example, while most telehealth platforms are highly encrypted, there is still higher risk of them being hacked or breached than in an in-person care setting. Additionally, because of the inherent less personal provider-patient relationship, patients may not feel as supported via telehealth care. They may even be misdiagnosed due to the varied Internet bandwidth they may be using that makes it more difficult to measure motor tasks. Finally, the extensiveness of telehealth practitioners ranges from state to state due to the recency of telehealth in general, and the wide variety of state regulations. Even though telehealth practitioners can provide medical services across state borders, the lack of a multistate telehealth license makes it so that providers must obtain and uphold a license in multiple states.
It is clear that telehealth can be an incredibly important tool for patient care, but cannot replace in-person care entirely, and rather should be used as a supplemental tool to support a face-to-face relationship with one’s practitioner. If you’re interested in utilizing telehealth, you can check with your healthcare provider or health insurance to ask if telehealth is right for you and how to access it. For more information, you can visit https://telehealth.hhs.gov/patients/how-do-i-schedule-telehealth-appointment
References:
https://catalyst.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/CAT.18.0268 Assessed and Endorsed by the MedReport Medical Review Board