Telehealth has the ability to connect patients and doctors who are miles apart, but what kind of facilities are taking advantage of such advancements?

In a study examining different healthcare facilities around the country, researchers set out to find just what facilities are utilizing telehealth and incorporating it into their care arsenal.

Using data from the 2014 American Academy of Family Physicians Telehealth Survey, the Robert Graham Center found that only about 15 percent of family physicians have used telehealth to care for their patients. This percentage varied depending on the practice’s setting and designation.

Results showed that physicians who worked in federally designated “safety net” clinics were more likely to use telehealth than those without such a designation (28 percent vs. 15 percent). Those working in HMOs also were more likely to incorporate telehealth in patient care (19 percent vs. 11 percent for non-HMO clinics). Physicians who worked in a patient-centered medical home were among the least likely to be users of telehealth.

“These findings suggest greater use among family physicians in safety net and managed care settings,” wrote Megan Coffman, MS, lead author on the study. “The source of this variation requires further investigation if policymakers wish to understand how family physicians in all settings can use technological advancements to better care for their patients. The lack of significant differences between users and nonusers in a patient-centered medical home may suggest a need for greater evidence of telehealth’s benefits and incentives for its adoption on the road to practice transformation.”