Telemedicine is being used in all areas of the healthcare industry, but its impact on rural medicine has been particularly important. For many people living in remote locations, the bi-weekly or monthly visits by “big city” physicians to treat illnesses and monitor care may not be enough. This is where telemedicine has made such a difference, allowing residents to have direct access to doctors and specialists for consultation and prescription services.
For women in rural areas, reproductive health concerns, such as unwanted pregnancy, are a concern. In some remote locations, such as Alaska or northern states such as Montana or the Dakotas, accessing reproductive health care, including abortion pills, may be all but impossible. Telemedicine is making a huge difference here, though, giving women the opportunity to not only prevent pregnancy but also to end pregnancies early and avoid surgical procedures.
Reproductive Health Disparities in Rural Areas
Rural women generally have less access to health care than their urban counterparts, with fewer hospitals and clinics per capita than seen in cities and larger towns. There also tends to be a limited number of healthcare providers in rural areas, and women’s health physicians are particularly sparse. This can lead to lots of difficulty for resident women, who must either jump on a plane or train to get to the nearest specialist or must delay treatments or avoid them altogether.
Obtaining preventative screenings for breast or cervical cancers is also very limited in rural areas, and women of all races have a far less likely chance to have a cervical cancer screening than women in urban centers. The delay or lack of screenings often results in women requiring more aggressive treatments and surgery when signs of cancer are ultimately discovered.
The number of obstetrician-gynecologists who are practicing in rural areas is very low, with only 6.4% of the country’s total number of OB-GYNs practicing outside metropolitan areas. Other women’s services, such as family planning, and abortion services are often limited or non-existent. For many physicians and health networks, telemedicine has become the most reliable means of bringing regular health care into these communities.
Basically defined, telemedicine is the exchanged of medical information from one site to another through electronic communications. Telemedicine encompasses a growing number of medical applications and services, all used to improve the patient’s health status. Email, wireless, smartphone and tablets, two-way video, and numerous other forms of electronic and telecommunications technologies are used to facilitate telemedicine.
Telemedicine was born more than 40 years ago as the United States prepared to venture into space. NASA was instrumental in the creation of the technologies that enabled them to monitor the health and well-being of the astronauts during training and when they went into space. At the same time, NASA and other scientists were also taking the innovative technology that would become telemedicine into hospitals, allowing them to expand care outside the hospital walls and into more rural communities. In fact, telemedicine quickly became a major part of medical care in remote regions of the United States and around the world.
Now, telemedicine has become a prominent part of the health care industry, offering rapid transmission of images, the ability to monitor vital signs even from great distances, and the opportunity for patients to consult with their doctor or with a specialist via video conferencing.
Telemedicine and Rural Health Services
The introduction of telemedicine into rural communities has allowed people living in those communities to access more complete health care. This is particularly the case for women in need of reproductive health care and abortion services, medical services which are often difficult to obtain. For women with an immediate need for an abortion or related services, waiting for weeks or even months to get an appointment or to get prescription abortifacients could force them into either spending a lot of money to travel for the services they need or having to undergo a surgical procedure that otherwise would have been unnecessary.
Researchers have conducted interviews with health care providers, who reported telemedicine technology is enabling them to respond more quickly and efficiently to the needs of their patients. Instead of waiting for weeks to obtain an appointment, now town residents can take advantage of direct contact with OB/ GYN physicians and be seen within days of a requested date, sometimes even that same day.
The responding physicians not only reported that their patients were being provided with better quality medical care and a better opportunity to choose how they wanted to be treated. Also, those who did need to have a surgical abortion, or other more serious procedures were able to schedule those procedures for the days when the doctor is physically in town.
Telemedicine access is also decreasing the care gap for poor women and women in rural areas who are not able to travel conveniently. The lack of resident care acutely affected these groups of women, but telemedicine access, including the ability to speak with the doctor through live video and chat, has made these it possible for these women to obtain the care they need.
Telemedicine technology has revolutionized medicine in so many ways. From its earliest days during the Space Race, telemedicine has had one goal: to bring together physicians and patients, improving both quality of and access to medical care. Today, telemedicine technologies are continuing to make a difference, bringing patients even in the most remote rural areas the ability to see a doctor quickly and receive basic treatment as well.
For women in need of reproductive health services, living in the countryside can be difficult. With access to OB/GYN physicians limited, as well as the ability to obtain the tests and procedures they need promptly, women may find themselves with no choice but to have surgical procedures to treat ailments that could have been treated non-invasively. Telemedicine is changing this, however, allowing women in need of abortion consultation or prescription abortifacients to consult directly with their doctor and get what they need when they need it.
Though nearly 20 states have made telemedicine abortion care illegal, the positive results of this technology’s use cannot be ignored and, as more and more medical services begin to be offered via telemedicine technology, the hope is that these services will continue to expand. Whether it is abortion consultation, pre-screening for formal appointments, or monitoring a patient during treatment, telemedicine is making a huge difference in the lives of women regardless of where they live.
For more information on telemedicine and sexual health, check out our blog.
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