Telehealth as a Means of Health Care Delivery for Physical Therapist Practice

TLDR

Telehealth delivers health services via telecommunications and, in rehabilitation, includes electronic delivery of physical therapy care, education, and monitoring, supported by policies such as the Affordable Care Act but impeded by adoption barriers. The article seeks to chart telehealth’s development in rehabilitation, identify obstacles to its use by physical therapists, and outline a strategy for sustained implementation.

Abstract

Telehealth is defined as the delivery of health-related services and information via telecommunications technologies. According to the American Telemedicine Association (ATA), “telehealth” is a broad term used to describe the use of electronic communications to deliver clinical services as well as other types of health information.1 In rehabilitation, telehealth is defined by the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) as the use of electronic communications to provide and deliver a host of health-related information and health care services, including, but not limited to, physical therapy–related information and services, over large and small distances.2 Telehealth may be used to provide health education and advice, communicate patient reminders, monitor clinical status, or deliver interventions. Other rehabilitation disciplines, such as occupational therapy and speech therapy, utilize the terms “telerehabilitation”3 and “telepractice”4 as terms to define telehealth in their respective disciplines. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111–148) (PPACA),5 signed into law on March 23, 2010, addresses the use of telehealth as a means of delivering efficient and effective health care in the United States. The national health care reform6 presents a unique opportunity for physical therapists to become identified as clinicians eligible to provide telehealth physical therapy services. However, there are several barriers to overcome if telehealth as a means of health care delivery for physical therapist practice is to become a reality. The objectives of this health policy perspective article are: (1) to describe the development of the telehealth field from a rehabilitation perspective, thereby highlighting some of the potential applications by physical therapists; (2) to discuss current barriers to adoption of telehealth technology by physical therapists; and (3) to identify an overall strategy to achieve long-term adoption of telehealth practices for physical therapists. The earliest applications of telehealth used technology to monitor cardiac …