![]() ![]() ![]() Due to rapid viral transmission, lack of effective anti-viral treatments, and the potential for long-term sequelae from viral infection, the CDC recommended that healthcare providers expand telehealth service to its patient population. After the WHO officially classified COVID-19 as a pandemic, the number of infections in the U.S. The 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) was declared by the World Health Organization (WHO) as a public health emergency of international concern on January 30th, 2020. ![]() In the U.S., the number of patients who used telehealth technology has also grown by 20 times in a five-year span (2013 – 2018), and this number reached an unprecedented 50 million in 2020. A wide variety of services now benefit from telehealth, including long-distance clinical care, patient and professional health-related education, and health administration. The range and use of telehealth services have increased dramatically over the past several decades. Telehealth has further played a role in supporting health care during disasters when travel is limited and in-person care is disrupted. It has brought healthcare to patients living in rural areas that lack sufficient access to in-person health care services. Telehealth is broadly defined as the delivery and facilitation of health and health-related services using electronic information and telecommunication technologies. Furthermore, no significant differences were found on preterm birth and Cesarean between the patients who used telehealth in their prenatal care and those who did not. In addition, we found that certain demographics correlated with lower telehealth utilization, including patients who were under 26 years old, were Black and/or Hispanic, were on a state-sponsored health insurance program, and those who lived in urban areas. Our results show that telehealth mainly was used in the second and third trimesters, especially for consulting services. We examine the electronic health records of over 2500 women to characterize 1) the volume of prenatal visits participating in telehealth, 2) disparities in obstetric patients using telehealth, and 3) the impact of telehealth use on obstetric outcomes, including duration of intrapartum hospital stays, preterm birth, Cesarean rate, and newborn birthweight. This study reports on telehealth use in prenatal care at a large academic medical center in Middle Tennessee, USA. Like other areas of care affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of telehealth has increased in prenatal care. It uses electronic information and telecommunication technologies to provide remote clinical care to patients, especially those living in rural areas that lack sufficient access to health care services. Telehealth is an alternative care delivery model to in-person care. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |