Telehealth

Telehealth nursing uses telecommunications technology to deliver healthcare services, including real-time video visits (synchronous), store-and-forward messaging (asynchronous), and remote patient monitoring (RPM). Remote patient monitoring uses devices that automatically transmit vital signs, blood glucose readings, weight, and pulse oximetry data from the patient's home to the healthcare team. Telehealth expands access to rural communities, homebound patients, and people with mobility or transportation barriers. That benefit is not automatic: inadequate internet access, limited digital literacy, hearing or vision impairment, language barriers, or an unsafe home environment can make a virtual encounter less reliable than an in-person assessment. The nurse therefore treats technology as part of the clinical environment, not merely as a communication convenience. A camera may show work of breathing, skin color, swelling, or a wound. It cannot palpate an abdomen, confirm peripheral pulses, or replace a complete hands-on examination. The quality of the clinical decision depends on recognizing what the encounter can establish and what it cannot.