BMC Health Services Research recently published a systematic review of e-Health implementation in rural communities. E-Health, or, “interactive communication and information technology aimed at enhancing community quality of life and/or individual health outcomes,” includes various telecommunicative strategies such as videoconferencing, internet/social media outreach, and cellphone applications aiming to improve health outcomes.
In their review, Hage et al. identify and describe various factors that promote or restrain the implementation and adoption of e-Health strategies in rural communities, such as geographic isolation, community demographics, implementation leadership, evaluation, and political/community involvement. The authors conclude that rural e-Health strategies may fail if the factors affecting e-Health adoption are underestimated. Check out the paper here for a detailed summary of their findings!