Nearly nine in 10 healthcare and IT professionals responding to a recent survey believe telehealth will have a profound effect on the transformation of care in the next decade. The survey, sponsored by Intel, also found that a majority of the 75 people queried are convinced that telehealth technologies will be a key element in improving the quality of care delivered to older, chronically ill patients.
Among the organizations not currently using telehealth technologies, about half of respondents have plans to adopt telehealth within the next year. To no surprise, they named the current fee-for-service reimbursement system and reluctance for clinical staff to adopt new technology as the top barriers to growth of telehealth services.
"The survey demonstrates the increasing need to shift from the current reactive healthcare system to a more proactive model that champions the patient and gives clinicians the information they need," Mariah Scott, director of sales and marketing for the Intel Digital Health Group, says in a written statement.
"This study reveals a need for better education about how to overcome perceived barriers in order to implement proven and cost-effective systems that improve quality of life for patients and clinicians alike," says an Intel press release.
Intel released the survey results at last week's American Telemedicine Association annual meeting in San Antonio. With such a small survey pool, the margin of error is 11.3 percent.
For more data:
- read this Intel press release
- see this eWeek story