A new study revealed that 94.6 percent of hospitals across the country use telemedicine, often to combat staffing shortage issues.
Eagle Telemedicine conducted a survey in May 2023 comprising 426 physicians, nurses, and hospital administrators and executives at inpatient facilities. The results revealed a telemedicine implementation rate of 89 percent across all the surveyed hospitals and 97.7 percent across hospitals with over 250 beds, according to an Aug. 24 press release from Eagle Telemedicine.
Hospitals reported utilizing telemedicine to expand care delivery, primarily focusing on physician specialty support, surge speciality support, staffing gap support and night shift support. Survey participants reported the most significant benefits of telemedicine to be improved access to care, enhanced specialty services, improved clinical retention and improved clinician recruiting.
"Telemedicine is the solution hospitals struggling with physician shortages need to increase vital access to care in both large and small facilities," Jason Povio, president and COO of Eagle Telemedicine, said in the report. "The high patient satisfaction rates and diverse hospital benefits make telemedicine programs a transformational option to improve hospital sustainability while improving patient outcomes."