Canada is a global leader in improving access to healthcare according to a new national study. “Across the country, use of telehealth is growing rapidly, bridging the distance between patients and their care providers,” said Dr. Jennifer Zelmer, Senior Vice-President, Clinical Adoption and Innovation, Canada Health Infoway. “Canadians do not have to travel as often to receive care, and the study reports improvements in access to care, quality, and productivity valued at millions of dollars last year.” Every province and territory in Canada is using Telehealth and almost 260,000 Telehealth sessions were held in 2010, supporting services such as remote care, education for health providers and administrative meetings. Nearly half of the clinical Telehealth sessions delivered care to patients from rural and remote communities, which are home to 21% of Canadians. The report estimates that Canadians who received care via telehealth rather than travelling to other communities for care saved about $70 million in personal travel costs in 2010. In addition, there were benefits to the health system valued at $55 million per year (e.g., because of avoided federal or provincial subsidized travel costs or reduced hospitalizations for patients with chronic diseases).
