In an update to its "Analytics 2014 Telemedicine Study," HIMSS has reported a slight uptick in telemedicine solutions and services adoption in 2015, from 54.5 percent to 57.7 percent.
"Historically, no one solution/service has emerged as dominant in the telemedicine space but a shift has begun to occur as organizations have realized the importance of expanding their services, improving care and lowering costs," the report reads.
The rise in telemedicine implementation by providers seems to be driven by a need to fill gaps in patient care, according to HIMSS. The "hub and spoke model", which leverages audio and visual communication between originating sites, is the primary program organizations are using to fill in patient care gaps. However, HIMSS concludes that given the changing paradigms and the reorientation of healthcare toward on-demand access, providers need to embrace multiple approaches to deploying telemedicine.
More articles on health IT:
Investigation reveals 'gag clauses' built into Epic, Cerner Allscripts EHR contracts impact patient safety
888 breaches hit in 2015 thus far: 10 things to know
Untangling the lingo: 10 most misused health IT terms