Telehealth interventions produce positive outcomes when used for remote monitoring, communication and counseling for patients with chronic conditions and for psychiatric services provided as part of behavioral health, according to a new report by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Based on 58 systemic reviews assessing the impact of telehealth on clinical outcomes, “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,” the report states. “Given sufficient evidence of effectiveness for these topics, the focus of future research should shift to implementation and practice-based research.” Topics that could be the focus of future systematic review include telehealth for consultation, use in intensive care units, and applications in maternal and child health, the authors said. The report also calls for additional primary research on other telehealth topics, and for integrating telehealth research into the evaluation of new models of care and payment. A recent AHA issue brief also highlighted telehealth’s benefits and urged support for more research.

Related News Articles

Headline
The Department of Health and Human Services Sept. 3 announced it will increase resources to curb information blocking and take action against health care…
Headline
The Assistant Secretary for Technology Policy/Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology Aug. 26 released a notice seeking comments…
Headline
The Department of Health and Human Services and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Aug. 21 announced the creation of a Healthcare Advisory…
Headline
The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, Environmental Protection Agency, National Security Agency, FBI and international agencies Aug. 13…
Headline
Josh Neff, CEO of CommonSpirit Mercy Hospital, discusses a new cutting-edge communication platform that sends patient EKGs directly from the ambulance to the…
Headline
The National Institutes of Health Aug. 5 issued guidance to researchers on the use of artificial intelligence for the research application process. According…