Report: Telemedicine Promotes Reform

Telemedicine can help health-reform initiatives to succeed by resolving issues with access to care, resource shortages and escalating health-care costs, yet it remains an underused technology, asserts a report released Monday by a global business technology provider.

That soon may change, CSC says in the report, "Telemedicine - An Essential Technology for Reformed Healthcare. " Better technology infrastructure and the introduction of more telemedicine solutions tailored to specific types of patients are driving growth in telemedicine usage, says the Falls Church, Va.-based technology company. Even so, widespread adoption "is not yet a reality," according to the report.

"Globally, the tipping point will be the care model realignment under health-care reform, where payment is value-driven, not volume-driven," the report says. "Care providers (hospitals, physicians, and ancillary caregivers -- all part of the overall care team) are paid for results, and whether the venue is the office or a virtual visit at home will no longer matter."

CSC says incorporating telemedicine into a medical practice is easier if:

• practices pick one health-care issue that telemedicine can improve through the use of existing solutions that address access, resource and care-delivery problems.
• the focus is on "immediate needs and opportunities" while leaving open a path to broader uses in the future.
• providers understand current challenges and investigate local and regional efforts that remove barriers to telemedicine use, such as new U.S. regulations that enable the credentialing of physicians who care for patients remotely across state lines.

CSC also announced it was launching a Global Institute for Emerging Healthcare Practices to evaluate emerging health-care trends and enhance the company's commercial products and services.