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. 2021 Sep;148(3):e2021053129.
doi: 10.1542/peds.2021-053129.

Telehealth: Improving Access to and Quality of Pediatric Health Care

Alison L Curfman  1 , Jesse M Hackell  2 , Neil E Herendeen  3 , Joshua J Alexander  4 , James P Marcin  5 , William B Moskowitz  6 , Chelsea E F Bodnar  7 , Harold K Simon  8 , S David McSwain; SECTION ON TELEHEALTH CARE, COMMITTEE ON PRACTICE AND AMBULATORY MEDICINE, COMMITTEE ON PEDIATRIC WORKFORCE
Affiliations

Telehealth: Improving Access to and Quality of Pediatric Health Care

Alison L Curfman et al. Pediatrics. 2021 Sep.

Abstract

All children and adolescents deserve access to quality health care regardless of their race/ethnicity, health conditions, financial resources, or geographic location. Despite improvements over the past decades, severe disparities in the availability and access to high-quality health care for children and adolescents continue to exist throughout the United States. Economic and racial factors, geographic maldistribution of primary care pediatricians, and limited availability of pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists all contribute to inequitable access to pediatric care. Robust, comprehensive telehealth coverage is critical to improving pediatric access and quality of care and services, particularly for under-resourced populations.

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Conflict of interest statement

POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST: Dr Hackell is an expert reviewer and provides testimony to various law firms; the other authors have indicated they have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose.

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