Other Titles
Rising Star Poster/Presentation
Abstract
Introduction: Telehealth may be a sustainable healthcare delivery option for rural veterans as it allows for increased access to services and can lead to improved healthcare outcomes; however, the use of telehealth in this population is understudied.1 Accordingly, the purpose of this integrative review was to analyze the barriers, outcomes, and effectiveness of telehealth for rural veterans. Levesque’s Patient-Centered Access to Health Care Framework guided this review as it considers supply-side and demand-side dimensions that influence how individuals access healthcare.2
Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed in the PubMed and Scopus databases. The framework outlined in Whittemore and Knafl (2005) guided this review process.3 Findings were synthesized and input into a data matrix. The John Hopkins Hierarchy of Evidence Guide was then used to determine the level of evidence of included articles.
Results: The initial search yielded 419 articles, five of which were retained for data extraction and synthesis. Articles employed a mix of qualitative and quantitative methodologies. A majority of participants were White and male. Thematic analysis revealed rural veterans’ experiences with telehealth through the dimensions of approachability, acceptability, availability and accommodation, affordability, and appropriateness. Physician participation, convenience in service use, reduced travel burden, cost-effectiveness, and remote health surveillance were found to influence the use of telehealth services in the rural veteran population. However, preference for in-person resources and difficulties with care coordination were determined to be barriers.
Discussion: Telehealth is an affordable, appropriate, and easy-to-use approach to improve healthcare access for rural veterans. Future studies should consider including a larger sample of non-White, female veterans as their needs or perspectives may differ from their White, male counterparts. Additionally, healthcare workers should advocate for policies that increase telehealth access for this vulnerable group, as it proves to be a promising way for rural veterans to access healthcare.
Notes
Reference list included in attached poster.
Sigma Membership
Zeta Sigma
Type
Poster
Format Type
Text-based Document
Study Design/Type
Other
Research Approach
Other
Keywords:
Telehealth, Telemedicine, Veterans, Rural Areas, Emerging Technologies
Recommended Citation
Palczewski, Olivia and Houlihan, Mary Clare K., "An Integrative Review of Telehealth for Rural Veterans" (2025). Biennial Convention (CONV). 75.
https://www.sigmarepository.org/convention/2025/posters_2025/75
Conference Name
48th Biennial Convention
Conference Host
Sigma Theta Tau International
Conference Location
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Conference Year
2025
Rights Holder
All rights reserved by the author(s) and/or publisher(s) listed in this item record unless relinquished in whole or part by a rights notation or a Creative Commons License present in this item record. All permission requests should be directed accordingly and not to the Sigma Repository. All submitting authors or publishers have affirmed that when using material in their work where they do not own copyright, they have obtained permission of the copyright holder prior to submission and the rights holder has been acknowledged as necessary.
Review Type
Invited Presentation
Acquisition
Proxy-submission
Date of Issue
2025-12-09
An Integrative Review of Telehealth for Rural Veterans
Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
Introduction: Telehealth may be a sustainable healthcare delivery option for rural veterans as it allows for increased access to services and can lead to improved healthcare outcomes; however, the use of telehealth in this population is understudied.1 Accordingly, the purpose of this integrative review was to analyze the barriers, outcomes, and effectiveness of telehealth for rural veterans. Levesque’s Patient-Centered Access to Health Care Framework guided this review as it considers supply-side and demand-side dimensions that influence how individuals access healthcare.2
Methods: A comprehensive literature search was performed in the PubMed and Scopus databases. The framework outlined in Whittemore and Knafl (2005) guided this review process.3 Findings were synthesized and input into a data matrix. The John Hopkins Hierarchy of Evidence Guide was then used to determine the level of evidence of included articles.
Results: The initial search yielded 419 articles, five of which were retained for data extraction and synthesis. Articles employed a mix of qualitative and quantitative methodologies. A majority of participants were White and male. Thematic analysis revealed rural veterans’ experiences with telehealth through the dimensions of approachability, acceptability, availability and accommodation, affordability, and appropriateness. Physician participation, convenience in service use, reduced travel burden, cost-effectiveness, and remote health surveillance were found to influence the use of telehealth services in the rural veteran population. However, preference for in-person resources and difficulties with care coordination were determined to be barriers.
Discussion: Telehealth is an affordable, appropriate, and easy-to-use approach to improve healthcare access for rural veterans. Future studies should consider including a larger sample of non-White, female veterans as their needs or perspectives may differ from their White, male counterparts. Additionally, healthcare workers should advocate for policies that increase telehealth access for this vulnerable group, as it proves to be a promising way for rural veterans to access healthcare.
Description
Although telehealth can increase access to services and improve healthcare outcomes for rural veterans, the use of telehealth in this population is understudied. The purpose of this review was to analyze the barriers, outcomes, and effectiveness of telehealth for rural veterans. Findings suggest that rural veterans appreciate the convenience, reduced travel burden, cost-effectiveness of telehealth services. Barriers include preference for in-person visits and difficulties with care coordination.