Caring for Seniors in Rural Areas
Providing quality health care to people in remote and rural areas is a challenge. Fortunately for some seniors, a new study shows that cognitive testing by telephone is generally as effective as in-person testing.
The study, which will appear in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, is the first to evaluate the effectiveness of telephone assessment in an elderly group using established neuropsychological tests. Fifty-four healthy women with an average age of 79 were divided into two groups and subjected to a series of standard neuropsychological tests that are typically used in clinical trials of Alzheimer's Disease. Both groups received in-person assessment of cognition as well as assessment by telephone.
The results suggest that telephone assessment may be a useful, cost-effective and time efficient alternative to in-person assessment of cognition in the elderly.
With new technologies that allow for free live video chatting (like Skype), telemedicine equipment might not even be required, and those in underserved areas will have more opportunities for care.