The telemedicine program improves access to sleep care for rural veterans

A VPN is an essential component of IT security, whether you’re just starting a business or are already up and running. Most business interactions and transactions happen online and VPN


There are more veterans who receive significant sleep care, especially those living in rural areas where access to sleep medicine specialists can be difficult. The Veterans Health Administration’s TeleSleep Program launched telehealth services in 2017 to support the testing, diagnosis, and treatment of obstructive sleep apnea and other sleep disorders. More than one million veterans who received HAV care in 2020 have sleep apnea.

“The implementation of these services has been very successful,” said Dr. Kathleen Sarmiento, head of the Rural Health Office’s TeleSleep Program program and national head of VHA TeleSleep. Sarmiento is also the director of a new regional VA TeleSleep program that covers northern California, Nevada and the Pacific Islands Hawaii, based on the San Francisco VA modeled health system. of the ORH program, but focused on reaching both urban and rural veterans. She is an associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. “The scope of this network is impressive, as 8% of VA’s health care systems (centers in this network) provide care to 18% of all rural veterans cared for to sleep nationwide.”

A new study from VHA’s TeleSleep Program of the Office of Rural Health (ORH) evaluated the expansion of telemedicine, sleep apnea testing at home, and remote management of sleep apnea for veterans in 12 centers and 63 radios across the country. From 2017 to 2020, the number of rural veterans seen for sleep-related disorders at TeleSleep sites tripled and the number of encounters for sleep-related disorders doubled. In 2020, 72% of rural veterans of TeleSleep centers or radios had at least one virtual sleep visit. This was significantly higher than non-TeleSleep VA sites, where only 64% of rural veterans had virtual visits.

“These results are very impressive as they show how funding a network of programs that share the same mission and purpose can result in a significant return on investment for an organization like VA. This program was one of the first initiatives in the entire world. ‘company funded through the VA Office of Rural Health and has also been one of the most successful in terms of scope,’ said Sarmiento.


Add sleep problems to the long-term effects of concussions


More information:
Kathleen Sarmiento et al, the 814 VHA TeleSleep program improves rural veterans ’access to sleep care by expanding telehealth networks. Sleep (2021). DOI: 10.1093 / sleep / zsab072.811

Newspaper information:
Sleep


Citation: Telemedicine Program Improves Access to Sleep Care for Rural Veterans (2021, June 14) Retrieved June 14, 2021 at https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-06-telemedicine-access -rural-veterans.html

This document is subject to copyright. Apart from any fair treatment for private study or research purposes, no part may be reproduced without written permission. Content is provided for informational purposes only.





Source link

TheHealthReporter

TheHealthReporter

Recent Posts

Enhance your Cisco HIMSS24 experience
The Cisco Customer Experience Healthcare Practice helps customers leverage the use of Cisco technology...
Read More
HIMSS 2024 Find out before you go
The future of healthcare is coming into focus! Now more than ever, we believe that technology is a critical...
Read More
How GLP-1 Drug Success Is Transforming Healthcare Revenue: Is Your Organization Ready?
The huge revenue opportunity arising from the recent success of GLP-1 drugs is not just for pharmaceutical...
Read More

Related Posts