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Paper on telemedicine
Paper on telemedicine
Current Status and Problems of Telemedicine
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Telemedicine is the use of health information technology to deliver health care from one location to another. It has the potential to increase the quality and access to health care and lower costs. From a technology standpoint, telemedicine is the application of telecommunications and computer technologies that are already in use. Technological barriers include instances where the use of technology is believed to not be sophisticated or sufficient enough to perform the task, uncertainty about the adequacy of a system to support clinical activities, ease of use, and concerns about patient confidentiality and privacy. In particular, quality of video images transmitted in telemedicine is a potentially major technological barrier. This would also include real-time continuous motion images when teleconsultations involve illness or injuries where range of motion is needed to make a diagnosis. Other potential barriers include provider education/training and the inconvenience of using telemedicine equipment (D. L. Paul). Technological barriers to telemedicine are having an impact on the telemedicine utilization rates and must be addressed. However, other barriers beyond technology, such as professional, legal, and financial, are still present with the use of telemedicine. …show more content…
The number of internet users world-wide is 3.5 billion in 2016, up from 2.2 billion in the previous year. Around 40% of the world population has an internet connection today whereas in 1995, it was less than 1%. Mobile technology is on the rise and consumers are accustomed to having access at their fingertips. Despite consumer demand and technological advancements, widespread adoption of telemedicine has not been fully
[20]Charles BL. (2000) Telemedicine can lower costs and improve access. Healthcare Financial Management. 54(4): 66.
Telehealth is the monitoring via remote exchange of physiological data between a patient at home and health care professionals at hospitals or clinics to assist with diagnosis and treatment. As our society ages and health care costs increase, government and private insurance payers are seeking technological interventions. Technological solutions may provide high quality healthcare services at a distance, utilize professional resources more effectively, and enable elderly and ill patients to remain in their own homes. Patients may experience decreased hospitalization and urgent care settings, and out of home care may not be required as the patient is monitored at home. However, no study has been able to prove telehealth benefits conclusively. This change in health care delivery presents new ethical concerns, and new relationship boundaries between health care professionals, patients, and family members. This paper will discuss telehealth benefits in specific patient populations, costs benefits of using telehealth, and concerns of using telehealth.
The purpose of telemedicine is to remove distance as a barrier to health care. While telehealth is an accepted resource to bridge the gap between local and global health care, integrating telehealth into existing health infrastructures presents a challenge for both governments and policy makers (HRSA, 2011). Today there are policy barriers that prevent the expansion of telehealth, including reimbursement issues raised by Medicare and private payers, state licensure, and liability and privacy concerns.
Morrissey, J. (2013, October 1). Telemedicine: “If you aren’t doing anything now, you’re way behind”. Hospitals & Health Networks, 87(10), 22-23.
Norbert, B., Bennett, L., Carnahan, L., Decker, V. B., Grady, B., & Holden, D. (2011). Evidenced-base Practice for Telemental Health. Telemedicine and e-health, 17(2), 131. doi:10.1089/tmj.2010.0158
Among the main aims of health care reform and improvement is expanding healthcare access to different populations, which have been subjects to underserving for a long period. These include the poor, the previously uncovered, rural societies, and the minorities, to mention just a few. Great challenges definitely lie ahead, since several individuals start seeking access to the primary healthcare clinicians (Arnaert & Delesie, 2001). Telenursing assures to be a crucial tool to meet such needs. It refers to making use of the telehealth technology in conducting nursing practice and delivering nursing care. Because of the quick telemedicine technology adoption within the healthcare institutions, telenursing emerges as a fresh tool that provokes discussions
The health industry has existed ever since doctors bartered for chickens to pay for their services. Computers on the other hand, in their modern form have only existed since the 1940s. So when did technology become a part of health care? The first electronic health record(EHR) programs were created in the 1960s around the same time the Kennedy administration started exploring the validity of such products (Neal, 2013). Between the 1960s and the current administration, there were little to no advancements in the area of EHR despite monumental advancements in software and hardware that are available. While some technology more directly related to care, such as digital radiology, have made strides medical record programs and practice management programs have gained little traction. Physicians have not had a reason or need for complicated, expensive health record suites. This all changed with the introduction of the Meaningful Use program introduced in 2011. Meaningful use is designed to encourage and eventually force the usage of EHR programs. In addition, it mandates basic requirements for EHR software manufactures that which have become fragmented in function and form. The result was in 2001 18 percent of offices used EHR as of 2013 78 percent are using EHR (Chun-Ju Hsiao, 2014). Now that you are caught up on some of the technology in health care let us discuss some major topics that have come up due to recent changes. First, what antiquated technologies is health care are still using, what new tech are they exploring, and then what security problems are we opening up and what is this all costing.
Telemedicine is a new comer to the field of medicine and it is the treatment of patients by means of telecommunications technology. Telemedicine is carried out in a variety of ways whether it is by smart phone, wireless tools or other forms of telecommunications. Examples of telemedicine include: 1) transmission of medical images 2) care services at the home of the patient 3) Diagnosis at distance 4) education and training of patients. The diversity of practices in what is known as telemedicine raises many questions and one of those questions, which is extremely important, relate to the safety of the practice and the risks involved.
Providers are faced with having to weigh the expense of investing in telehealth technologies with the ability to generate enough revenue to cover these costs. This is often difficult as expenses in the literature can cover those directly linked with the delivery of care (healthcare costs) and those that are not directly related to providing care (non-heath care costs) (Bergmo, 2009). Some of the healthcare costs a practitioner must consider are items such as computers, video cameras, microphones, modems, routers, software and other components such as specialized stethoscopes and imaging equipment needed to assess an individual patient. The cost of these items can add up quickly. As one study estimates, the capital expenditure for the implementation of telehealth video conferencing can reach as much as $80,000. The cost of transmitting data in order to deliver these services can also reach $800-$2000 per month in spoke and hub type telehealth systems (Gamble, Savage, & Icenogle, 2004). These costs incur even more ...
ABSTRACT Technology affects society in every aspect in today’s world. There is not one single industry that has not been affected by technology, but no other industry is more affected than the field of medicine and healthcare. Modern technology has changed the structure and organization of the medical field. With rising health care cost the amount of uninsured people keeps rising higher and higher. With new technology the prices will only continue to rise. There are currently approximately 46 million people without health care coverage and that number continues to climb with rising health care cost. Employers are either no longer able to pay for employee insurance because of the 54 percent cost increase, or they are having to change policies
It is true that telehealth technologies can enable provision of high-quality care and at a lower cost, especially in underserved areas, but the issue of legalities impedes its implementation. The issue of online telehealth, incorporation of internet and computer services in therapeutic techniques elicits a lot of debate. There is no uniform legal approach to telehealth which also hampers its implementation. According to Perle et al. (2011), medical practitioners should take part in education programs that would give them the necessary knowledge on the legal and ethical aspects of telehealth implementation so as to ensure that barriers are
Telemedicine hold a great promise in health information technology, it not only promises to improve health care delivery but it also aids in serving the most vulnerable of patients.
Telehealth definition according to our textbook by Hebda, T., & Czar, P., 2013 is the use of telecommunications technologies and electronic information to exchange healthcare information and to provide and support services such as long-distance clinical healthcare to clients. It provides health care to patients that may not be able to have access to care. Telehealth requires a patient to have electronic tools to facilitate this type of service. Electronic tools can be a telephone, computer, or a video camera. The patient is able to call or enable video conferencing to have access to their health care provider. Telehealth allows the patient to have access to preventative care and education on their disease process and how to manage it at home.
From state and federal levels, the healthcare industry has come a very long way, experiencing changes along the way. The development of advanced technology that has enhanced the quality of healthcare delivery systems will help all patients to be able to benefit. Doctors are able to access patient records at a faster rate and respond to their patients in a much more timely fashion. E-mail, electronic transfer of records and telemedicine will give all patients and physicians the tools needed to be more efficient, deliver quality care and deliver quality telecommunication at a faster pace than before.
With the help of telehealth and telenursing, overall healthcare costs can be reduced, especially for those patients