Understanding Health Equity:

Health equity ensures everyone has equal opportunity to achieve optimal health. In telehealth, this translates to removing barriers and empowering underserved communities to access the care they deserve. 

These communities often include:

• Low-income individuals
• Rural residents
• People of color
• Immigrants
• LGBTQ+ individuals
• People with disabilities
• Older adults
• Limited English speakers
• Digital literacy challenges
• Underinsured or uninsured individuals

Barriers to Telehealth Access:

These groups face unique challenges, such as:

• Lack of technology (devices, internet)
• Privacy concerns
• Language barriers
• Limited digital literacy
• Lack of provider availability
• Cultural considerations

Building Bridges, Not Walls:

OpenTelemed empowers you to break down these barriers and foster inclusive care. Here’s how:

• Make resources accessible: Provide materials in multiple formats and languages, use clear visuals, and offer support for low-literacy patients.
• Prioritize patient comfort: Utilize inclusive intake forms, ask about accessibility needs, and offer extra time for patients to connect.
• Equip your staff: Foster cultural competency training, encourage community involvement, and consider dedicated telehealth support staff.
• Embrace inclusive technology: Implement screen readers, closed captioning, and accessibility-focused algorithms.
• Engage your community: Encourage patient participation in planning and implementing health equity initiatives.

Special Populations:

Telehealth holds particular promise for underserved groups:

• LGBTQ+ patients: Virtual care expands access in rural areas and reduces discrimination concerns.
• Older adults: Telehealth removes transportation barriers and empowers tech-savvy seniors, while providing support for those less comfortable with technology.

Empowering You, Empowering Your Patients:

OpenTelemed offers resources and tools to build a health-equitable telehealth practice:

Flexible workflow: Adapt quickly to community needs and ensure smooth integration of virtual care.

Staff and provider training: Equip your team with cultural sensitivity and accessibility knowledge.

Telehealth support resources: Consider dedicated staff or utilize our resources to guide patients through virtual visits.

Join the Movement:

By embracing these principles and partnering with OpenTelemed, you can become a champion for health equity in telehealth. Imagine a future where everyone, regardless of zip code or identity, has equal access to quality virtual healthcare. That’s the power of telehealth, that’s the promise of OpenTelemed.

Let’s build bridges, not walls, and bridge the gap towards a healthier, more equitable future for all.

References:

• Improve access to telehealth.
• How to meet their patients’ needs
• Create a flexible telehealth workflow 
• Advancing Health Equity at Every Point of Contact 
• Health Disparities Resources
• The basics of telehealth (PDF)
• Telehealth for families of children with special health care needs
• Finding telehealth options
• Health Equity — from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Providing Health Literate Virtual Health Services   — from National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
• Telehealth and Health Disparities — from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality
• Innovative Virtual Care Strategies — from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
• Guidance on Nondiscrimination in Telehealth — from the Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights
• The Use of Telehealth for Disability Evaluations in Medicine and Allied Health  — from the National Academies Press (NAP)