This paper is in the following e-collection/theme issue:

TTRN CPH 2022: "Digital Health beyond COVID-19: Lessons Learned" (37)

Published on in Vol 9 (2023)

Preprints (earlier versions) of this paper are available at https://preprints.jmir.org/preprint/41562, first published .
Telehealth Challenges for California Rural Hospitals in Reaching Latino Populations During COVID-19

Telehealth Challenges for California Rural Hospitals in Reaching Latino Populations During COVID-19

Telehealth Challenges for California Rural Hospitals in Reaching Latino Populations During COVID-19

Authors of this article:

Noemi Mauricio1 Author Orcid Image ;   Glen Newhart1 Author Orcid Image ;   Steven Herber1 Author Orcid Image ;   Veronica Ahumada-Newhart2 Author Orcid Image
Article Authors Cited by Tweetations Metrics

    Abstract

    1Saint Helena Hospital, Loma Linda University, Saint Helena, CA, United States

    2University of California Davis, School of Medicine, Center for Health and Technology, Sacramento, CA, United States

    *all authors contributed equally

    Corresponding Author:

    Veronica Ahumada-Newhart, PhD

    University of California Davis, School of Medicine

    Center for Health and Technology

    4610 X Street

    Suite 2347

    Sacramento, CA, 95817

    United States

    Phone: 1 916 734 2351

    Email: vahumada@ucdavis.edu


    Background: Rural and remote communities were especially vulnerable to the COVID-19 pandemic due to the availability and capacity of rural health services. Research has found that key issues surrounded (1) the lack of staff, (2) the need for coordinated health services, and (3) operational and facility issues. Similarly, research also confirms that irrespective of hospital capacity issues existing during crisis, compared to urban communities, rural communities typically face poorer access to health services. Telehealth programs have long held promise for addressing health disparities perpetuated by inadequate health care access. In response to the current COVID-19 pandemic, Adventist Health Saint Helena Hospital, a rural hospital in northern California, urgently worked to expand telehealth services. However, as Adventist Health Saint Helena Hospital is the longest-serving rural hospital in the state of California, administrators were also able to draw on experiences from the pandemic of 1918/1919. Understanding their historically rural and heavily Latino populations, their telehealth approach was coupled with cultural approaches for prioritizing socially responsive and equitable access to health services.

    Objective: This study aimed to present one rural community’s holistic sociotechnical response to COVID-19 in redesigning their health care delivery approach. Redesign efforts included the expansion of digital health services coupled with county-wide collaborations for nondigital mobile health centers, testing, and vaccination clinics to meet the needs of those with limited digital access and language barriers.

    Methods: We present data on telehealth services for maintaining critical care services and a framework on the feasibility of private-public partnerships to address COVID-19 challenges.

    Results: In this paper, we provide a critical review of how a rural hospital adapted its health care approach to incorporate telehealth services and distance services to meet the needs of a diverse population.

    Conclusions: This paper contributes empirical data on how rural communities can use telehealth technologies and community partnerships for a holistic community approach to meet health needs during a natural disaster.

    Conflicts of Interest: None declared.

    iproc 2023;9:e41562

    doi:10.2196/41562

    Keywords

    telehealth challenges; California rural hospitals; Latino populations; COVID-19 

    Edited by B Dinesen; This is a non–peer-reviewed article. submitted 30.07.22; accepted 27.03.23; published 03.04.23

    Copyright

    ©Noemi Mauricio, Glen Newhart, Steven Herber, Veronica Ahumada-Newhart. Originally published in Iproceedings (https://www.iproc.org), 03.04.2023.

    This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in Iproceedings, is properly cited. The complete bibliographic information, a link to the original publication on https://www.iproc.org/, as well as this copyright and license information must be included.