One of the greatest healthcare disparities in America is the lack of care available for the citizens residing in the rural areas. Residents in the rural areas experience lack of diverse specialty care, difficult transportations due to geographical barriers, shortage of information and educational opportunities available to better understand healthcare. These difficulties often times make it challenging for the patients within the rural community to actively seek healthcare. While more than 20 percent of the American population resides in the rural area, only about 10 percent of the physicians and caregivers practice in these somewhat isolated areas. (National Rural Health Association) Approximately 16 percent of the adult residents and
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In 2011, President Barack Obama stated that the new health care information technology is essential and announced that he supports the breakthrough of technology in health care. (President Barack Obama, 2011) The federal agencies, including the White House, devoted to make Internet and technology, especially high-speed wireless services to at least 98 percent of the Americans within the next 10 years. The Obama Administration has also targeted investments totaling 7 billion dollars to expand the broadband access through the Recovery Act which can than improve the overall coverage and quality of Internet connection in the rural areas. (President Barack Obama, 2011) Telemedicine in rural health can improve the necessities and the functions of everyone included under the healthcare tree. Web meetings through programs such as WebEx or Skype can be used to minor emergency care instead of waiting for small clinics to open or patients directly making a travel to the big cities for a doctor’s appointment. Such convenience makes it low in comparison to a physical face-to-face meeting with the physician. The physician is able to see more patients in an efficient manner, does not have to hire as much staff members, which all play a great role in affordability of office visits. Elderly patients can receive care through the monitoring systems that are of high hospital quality into their own homes. (McNickle, 2011) The devices would than send the data collected from the monitors to the monitoring center where a qualified technicians or caregivers can review the information. Once in a while, the monitors will be calibrated to keep adequate track of the patients’
In 2011, President Barack Obama stated that the new health care information technology is essential and announced that he supports the breakthrough of technology in health care. (President Barack Obama, 2011) The federal agencies, including the White House, devoted to make Internet and technology, especially high-speed wireless services to at least 98 percent of the Americans within the next 10 years. The Obama Administration has also targeted investments totaling 7 billion dollars to expand the broadband access through the Recovery Act which can than improve the overall coverage and quality of Internet connection in the rural areas. (President Barack Obama, 2011) Telemedicine in rural health can improve the necessities and the functions of everyone included under the healthcare tree. Web meetings through programs such as WebEx or Skype can be used to minor emergency care instead of waiting for small clinics to open or patients directly making a travel to the big cities for a doctor’s appointment. Such convenience makes it low in comparison to a physical face-to-face meeting with the physician. The physician is able to see more patients in an efficient manner, does not have to hire as much staff members, which all play a great role in affordability of office visits. Elderly patients can receive care through the monitoring systems that are of high hospital quality into their own homes. (McNickle, 2011) The devices would than send the data collected from the monitors to the monitoring center where a qualified technicians or caregivers can review the information. Once in a while, the monitors will be calibrated to keep adequate track of the patients’