Telehealth for Rural Populations (1 CE)

This course is for:  Psychologists, Counselors, and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists

Course By: Tamara Avery, PsyD

Content By: Hilty, D. M., Gentry, M. T., McKean, A. J., Cowan, K. E., Lim, R. F., and Lu, F. G. (2020). Telehealth for rural diverse populations: Telebehavioral and cultural competencies, clinical outcomes and administrative approaches, mHealth, 6(20), 1-19. 

Course Description: Telehealth service improves access to care and leverages resources for individuals residing in rural areas, particularly among culturally diverse patients. Telehealth treatment is a way to meet the behavioral health needs of rural populations when access to care is otherwise limited and/or underutilized. Additionally, increased cultural competence has been linked to increased patient satisfaction, treatment adherence, and information seeking and sharing. Administrative adjustments are suggested to promote culturally competent care by telehealth providers. Additional structured research is needed respective of combined competency development, implementation, and evaluation in rural settings.

Learning Objectives:

1. Review the literature regarding rural, culturally diverse populations and health care setting challenges for the provision of timely evidence-based care
2. Consider the clinical outcomes, cultural competencies, and administrative approaches
3. Understand the statistical findings and clinical implications provided by the researchers

Course Outline:

• Read and understand Telehealth for rural diverse populations: Telebehavioral and cultural competencies, clinical outcomes and administrative approaches
• Review the Course Description and Learning Objectives
• Consider the need for clinician cultural competence coupled with the need for telebehavioral health access due to limited resources in rural areas
• Work through the post-test questions; answer selections should be derived from the respective article
• Return to the referenced article for any missed questions and/or to better understand telehealth, cultural competence, and the impact for rural, culturally diverse populations

Approvals: