The Future of Telemedicine
As the telemedicine technologies and telecommunications improve, it is expected that the use of telemedicine in transport medicine will continue to increase and become more incorporated in the way that providers practice pediatric medicine.
The CMS and related federal and state agencies, including the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), are increasingly recognizing the utility of telemedicine in increasing access to care, improving quality of care, and increasing the efficiency with which regionalized care can be delivered. Many pediatric academic medical centers are already using telemedicine to extend their reach, extending the delivery of their care outside the walls of their physical facilities. It is anticipated that as federal, state, and more local regulatory bodies continue to update reimbursement, licensure, and credentialing policies and as more research data are published on the efficacy of telemedicine, telemedicine will become a critical tool for all personnel involved in emergency medical services for children, including those involved in pediatric transport medicine.References
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