Telemedicine is the delivery of health care services by health care professionals using information and communication technologies to exchange valid information for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases. Telemedicine was further developed in Latin America during the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic, becoming the first line of defense for health professionals to stop the spread of infections and allow them to continue the care of their patients. During the pandemic, 79% of rheumatologists in Latin America reported the use of remote communication, the most frequent being the use of phone calls and WhatsApp voice messages. In contrast, 84% of the patients reported that telemedicine was appropriate for them during the pandemic, but only 54% considered telemedicine to be a valid option for rheumatic health care after the pandemic. Telemedicine and telehealth have advantages such as lower costs, improved access in rural areas, shortage of care providers, and reduction in waiting time for appointments. However, it also has some challenges, such as legal, technological, and organizational barriers. In this review, we explore the current state of telemedicine in Latin America and discuss its future.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/RHU.0000000000001968DOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

health care
12
latin america
12
telemedicine latin
8
telemedicine
6
care
5
telehealth telemedicine
4
latin
4
latin american
4
american rheumatology
4
rheumatology era
4

Similar Publications

Global Use, Adaptation, and Sharing of Massive Open Online Courses for Emergency Health on the OpenWHO Platform: Survey Study.

J Med Internet Res

January 2025

Learning and Capacity Development Unit, Health Emergencies Programme, World Health Organization, Geneva, Switzerland.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated the global need for accessible content to rapidly train health care workers during health emergencies. The massive open access online course (MOOC) format is a broadly embraced strategy for widespread dissemination of trainings. Yet, barriers associated with technology access, language, and cultural context limit the use of MOOCs, particularly in lower-resource communities.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Research progress on the structural and anti-colorectal malignant tumor properties of Shikonin.

J Cancer Res Ther

December 2024

Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University and Shandong Provincial Qianfoshan Hospital, Shandong Key Laboratory of Rheumatic Disease and Translational Medicine, Shandong Lung Cancer Institute, Jinan, China.

Colorectal cancer is the third most prevalent malignant tumor worldwide. Despite the advancements in surgical procedures and treatment options, CRC remains a considerable cause of cancer-related mortality. Shikonin is a naphthoquinone compound that exhibits multiple biological activities, including anti-inflammatory and anti-tumor effects as well as wound healing promotion.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Importance: The prevalence of pharmacies owned by integrated insurers and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), or insurer-PBMs, is of growing regulatory concern. However, little is known about the role of these pharmacies in Medicare, in which pharmacy network protections may influence market dynamics.

Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of insurer-PBM-owned pharmacies and the extent to which insurer-PBMs steer patients to pharmacies they own in Medicare.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Importance: Dual-eligible older adults rely on Medicaid to pay for Medicare premiums and cost sharing in addition to supplemental services including dental and long-term care. However, the unique experiences of dual-eligible older adults with Medicaid unwinding remain unknown.

Objective: To assess the awareness and experiences of dual-eligible older adults with Medicaid redetermination.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Healthy Lifestyle Care vs Guideline-Based Care for Low Back Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial.

JAMA Netw Open

January 2025

University Centre for Rural Health, School of Health Sciences, University of Sydney, Lismore, New South Wales, Australia.

Importance: An unhealthy lifestyle is believed to increase the development and persistence of low back pain, but there is uncertainty about whether integrating support for lifestyle risks in low back pain management improves patients' outcomes.

Objective: To assess the effectiveness of the Healthy Lifestyle Program (HeLP) compared with guideline-based care for low back pain disability.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This superiority, assessor-blinded randomized clinical trial was conducted in Australia from September 8, 2017, to December 30, 2020, among 346 participants who had activity-limiting chronic low back pain and at least 1 lifestyle risk (overweight, poor diet, physical inactivity, and/or smoking), referred from hospital, general practice, and community settings.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!