Research on telehealth and chronic medical conditions: Critical review, key issues, and future directions.

Abstract

To provide a critical review of studies on the impact of telecommunication-based interventions for persons with chronic disabilities. Design: Only those studies that focused on specific health care or clinical interview outcomes and included at least 1 comparison condition were selected for review. Ten studies met these criteria. Results: Overall, the results of initial studies suggest that telecommunication-based interventions may be an efficient and effective way of providing services for chronically disabled populations, even for those who have no previous experience with the technologies. Conclusions: The number of controlled trials examining telecommunication-based interventions for those with chronic disabilities remains small. Future research should endeavor to increase sample size, use conceptually meaningful control groups, focus on cost utility, and investigate which types of telecommunication-based interventions provide the best match with specific populations.One of the most exciting developments in health care and rehabilitation today is the growing use of telecommunication technologies to provide health informa-

Face-to-Face Versus Video Assessment of Facial Paralysis: Implications for Telemedicine (Preprint)

“…This suggests a potential for teleassessment, but the impact of synchronicity and clinician-patient interactions on the reliability of assessment needs to be empirically investigated. If the results are positive, the use of tele-health could increase access to specialized services for individuals with FNP thereby improving quality of care and rehabilitative outcomes [12,18,19,23,25].…”

“…Telemedicine is healthcare delivered via telecommunications technology over a distance [11,[15][16][17][18], allowing improved access to care in various physical and mental health conditions by overcoming geographical and temporal barriers [11,[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]. Telemedicine has also been associated with increased access and compliance to pulmonary rehabilitation [22], and reduced hospitalization rates, emergency department visits, and length of hospital stay for patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) [23].…”

Managing pain in high-risk patients within a patient-centered medical home

“…In this approach, the provider provides face-to-face services through a direct, real time video link to a patient. These approaches have been successfully utilized in working with a wide range of health [92] and mental health problems [93] including pain management in adults and children [94,95]. Among the most dramatic examples of the use of telehealth technology for the delivery of services are the recent successes documented in the delivery of prolonged exposure treatment for PTSD via telehealth for Veterans of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts [96].…”

Stakeholder Readiness for Telehomecare: Implications for Implementation

“…2 Telehomecare effectiveness has been demonstrated for a number of specific chronic illnesses, including diabetes, hypertension, and asthma. [3][4][5][6] Though limited by small sample sizes and short study periods, 7 the vast majority of studies in the literature report positive outcomes. But, while the technology has proven to be effective, it is not clear how to integrate this service into routine care.…”