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QUESTIONING CONNECTION: EXAMINING THE FUTURE OF TELEHEALTH
By Chloe Malley
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s a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth has become a staple of US healthcare. Telehealth visits increased significantly as a response to global stayat-home orders; between June and November 2020, around 30 percent of all weekly American health center visits were done through telehealth services. The concept behind telehealth is simple: patients schedule a phone or video appointment through an online portal or with a primary care provider, bypassing the need for in-person appointments. Popularized in the 1960s, telemedicine DESIGN BY KATE BOWERS, ART BY MADELEINE OH
services have been used more recently to help bridge the gap in quality healthcare in rural and impoverished communities where access to healthcare is often limited by the number of doctors who practice in the immediate area. Today, the use of telemedicine has become especially commonplace as a direct result of the overcrowding in hospitals and the national shortage of physicians/doctors facilitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Although Tufts Counseling and Mental Health Services has offered telehealth services through external websites NOVEMBER 8, 2021 TUFTS OBSERVER 19
