Telemedicine leaves behind non-English speakers, study shows

The Verge: Telemedicine leaves behind non-English speakers, study shows

According to a new study in the SSM-Qualitative Research in Health journal, people who speak limited English struggled to access telehealth services in the US during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, affecting their ability to connect with medical care. The study found that clinic patients who spoke limited English struggled to set up and use platforms like Zoom for health visits. The study emphasized how important it is for telehealth platforms to consider their most vulnerable users while developing tools. Specifically, the researchers recommended telehealth pilot tests should include people who speak languages other than English.