Benefits, Drawbacks, and Implications of Telehealth in Nursing

Telehealth
Name
Institution
Telehealth
Telehealth is a technology that allows patients to access healthcare services remotely. Patients and doctors interact in real time using mediums such as video conferencing and text messages, but can also share medical information over time to facilitate the provision of care regardless of distance and time (Toh, Pawlovich, &Grzybowski, 2016). It is especially useful to patients in rural areas and vulnerable communities, such as the elderly, who face challenges in accessing mainstream healthcare services. The aim of this paper is to examine telehealth by analyzing the issues that led to its development and its success so far. In addition, this paper will discuss some of the benefits and drawbacks of telehealth and point out the implications of telehealth to nursing.
Issues that Prompted the Development of Telehealth
Over the recent past, the cost of healthcare services has been increasing at an alarming rate. Thus, there has been a need to develop technologies that allow patients to access care, but at affordable costs. In addition, there have been widespread disparities in quality, affordability, and access to healthcare (Fathi, Modin, & Scott, 2017). These disparities are especially common between rural and urban areas where access to care in rural areas has been quite challenging. Other factors that contribute to these disparities include racial and socio-economic differences. All these issues led to the development of telehealth to ensure that these vulnerable communities have access to affordable healthcare services.
In addition, technological advancement allowed for such technology to be developed. According to Fathi, Modin, and Scott (2017), there has been immense development in communication technology, which has facilitated the implementation of telehealth services, especially to vulnerable communities. Given the increasing need to provide safe, timely, and patient-centered care in an efficient way (Fathi, Modin, & Scott, 2017), advancement in communication technology provided an avenue in which healthcare providers can do so.
The development of telehealth was also pushed by the changes in the structure of the current population. The needs and behaviors of healthcare consumers are changing due to the rise of a generation that is highly dependent on technology (Fathi, Modin, & Scott, 2017). Currently, people are utilizing technology to make their lives easier, and it is not any different in healthcare. Thus, telehealth was developed to fill the gaps presented by the changing dynamics of healthcare consumers.
Is Telehealth Working as Intended?
One of the issues that led to the development of telehealth was to improve access to healthcare services. According to Dorsey and Topol (2016), telehealth has been moderately successful in improving access to care, especially for rural communities. Thus, telehealth is working as intended in closing the healthcare disparity gap between rural and urban areas. In addition, telehealth is also showing promise in reducing the cost of care. Dorsey and Topol (2016) reveal that a number of healthcare organizations are offering low-cost telehealth services, usually less than $50 for every virtual visit, at any time of...