Rural patients reluctant to use telemedicine—even when infrastructure is in place

Telemedicine has often been touted as a way to provide easier access to care in rural parts of the U.S., but a study from the Bipartisan Policy Center and the Center for Outcomes Research and Education found it may be the patients themselves who limit the positive impact of those services.

As summarized by National Public Radio’s Marketplace, the study found patients have reluctant to use telemedicine services because of concerns about the quality it will provide, even when their area has the digital infrastructure—like broadband internet access—in place to support those platforms.

Providers may be reluctant as well, the report said, because many haven’t been exposed to the technology before. This may change as more medical schools, such as the University of South Dakota and University of Iowa, incorporate telemedicine into their curriculum.

Despite other concerns, such as potentially duplicating services and ill-suited reimbursement models, the report still recommended expansion of telemedicine to deliver care to rural patients and take some pressure off those areas’ limited hospitals and practitioners.

“In places where access is limited because of the number of providers, telemedicine can offer relief for overworked rural practitioners, and stakeholders noted that telemedicine services address provider isolation by making a rural provider part of a virtual care team,” the report said.

Read more about the report at the link below: