Page 29 - Part 1 Introduction to Telemedicine

SVMIC Introduction to Telemedicine

These are just samples of the myriad creative uses that providers,

patients, social services and families are finding for telehealth.

Effectiveness
Formal research on telemedicine outcomes and effectiveness is

expensive and slow; there is a significant lag time between

research and publication. Most active telemedical programs were
implemented before proof was readily available for benefits or cost

impacts. It is likely that the proliferation of telemedicine will
continue to outpace rigorous evidence, because the concept has

such appealing face value.

However, the literature that exists has been supportive. According
to a 2016 analysis of 58 systematic reviews of telehealth literature

by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ):
14

A large volume of research reported that telehealth

interventions produce positive outcomes when used for

remote patient monitoring, broadly defined, for several

chronic conditions and for psychotherapy as part of

behavioral health. The most consistent benefit has been
reported when telehealth is used for communication and

counseling or remote monitoring in chronic conditions

such as cardiovascular and respiratory disease, with

improvements in outcomes such as mortality, quality of

life, and reductions in hospital admissions.

14 Totten AM, Womack DM, Eden KB, McDonagh MS, Griffin JC, Grusing S, Hersh WR. Telehealth: Mapping the
evidence for patient outcomes from systematic reviews. Technical Brief No. 26. (Prepared by the Pacific Northwest
Evidence-based Practice Center under Contract No. 290-2015-00009-I.) AHRQ Publication No.16-EHC034-EF.
Rockville, MD: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality; June 2016.
www.effectivehealthcare.ahrq.gov/reports/final.cfm.

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