Successful Healthcare Policy

Telehealth policies regulate and control the use of technology in healthcare. In the wake of COVID-19, there was an increased need for the benefit of telehealth. Telehealth ensures patients can access healthcare without physically visiting the hospital and pharmacies. Visits to the hospital increase the risk of hospital-acquired infections such as COVID-19, especially among the elderly, children, and patients with comorbidities such as diabetes and hypertension. The incorporation of telehealth in healthcare received criticisms, hence the need for a telehealth policy. Telehealth policy through the HIPAA regulations ensures that patient information and medical records are accessed only by the intended healthcare providers (Isola & Al Khalili, 2022). Medical records obtained through telehealth are at risk of hacking and data insecurity. Telehealth policies have guidelines on how insurance, such as Medicaid and Medicare, should reimburse telehealth modalities (Mechanic et al., 2022). Healthcare workers must consider the services eligible for reimbursement according to the insurance and state policies. An insurance program can reimburse only for telehealth services delivered through a live video call, while another insurance program can reimburse every telehealth service despite the mode of delivery. Policies also outline which healthcare workers are reimbursed for telehealth services.

Policies and guidelines ensure that patients receive timely and quality healthcare services despite telehealth. Telehealth policy allows internet prescribing. Patients can obtain medication from pharmacies by sending a prescription and having their medication delivered. Pharmacists are required only to dispense valid prescriptions and keep records of an internet order. Nurses use telehealth to offer quality healthcare services such as mental health and chronic disease management; therefore, their input was required during policymaking (Mechanic et al., 2022). Nursing leaders assessed telehealth policies’ impact on nursing practice to ensure the policies benefit the nurses’ work environment and patients. Nursing leaders ensure that all nurses are educated on telehealth policies, especially usage, data privacy, and confidentiality.