The term telehealth encompasses clinical diagnosis, education, management, and the monitoring of health via technology. It is not a specific service, but rather an umbrella term for a variety of strategies to enhance medical care delivery.
The greatest advantage of telehealth is ease of access. Patients can quickly and easily speak with doctors making them more likely to take appropriate care measures. Patients in remote areas can receive specialist referrals without having to first meet with their primary care doctors. Doctors are able to make diagnoses with greater accuracy. All of these factors result in improved patient outcomes.
While there are pros and cons to implementing telehealth solutions, it appears to be the way of the future for patients and providers. Approximately 90% of US hospitals are somewhere on the path toward implementing a telehealth program, with fully 50% already having a program in place Rutgers University
