Download our report below. Here are the key takeaways from our report on telehealth in rural areas.
- Most individuals with disabilities receiving care using telehealth had a positive opinion regarding the experience, some experienced functional improvement in motor performance, language ability, self-care skills, mental status, and quality of life. In addition, telehealth made it possible for them to access desired interventions and saved them time and money.
- The consensus is that telehealth is emerging as a tool with the potential to improve access to care, potentially reduce costs, and enhance patient satisfaction. There is less support for telehealth’s potential to improve health outcomes.
- Clinicians recognize the potential benefits of telehealth for individuals with disabilities, but their knowledge and confidence prescribing treatment via telehealth is a significant barrier to its use.
- Individuals with disabilities residing in rural areas are increasingly using telehealth services as an effective approach to self-manage their chronic health conditions and using telehealth-based mental health services.
- There is great potential for telehealth services to have an increasingly positive impact on the quality of rural individuals with disabilities’ lives.
- Since technology literacy and preferences tend to vary, it is crucial that telehealth providers collaborate with people with disabilities and caregivers to ensure that the telehealth technologies are tailored to their specific needs.