Introduction: This study assesses rural providers' perceptions of their ability to deliver high quality care via telehealth compared to usual care, and whether attending providers perceive that emergency department (ED) telehealth visits influence clinical reasoning in regard to patient disposition, specifically in tele-behavioral and tele-neurological cases. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted of 134 ED providers (nurses [n = 126] and physicians [n = 8]) who were working in five Midwestern critical access hospitals (response rate 83%). Descriptive, correlational and stepwise regression analyses were employed to evaluate provider perceptions of 1) competency level in telehealth delivery, 2) patient health outcomes, 3) access to continuing education in telehealth, and 4) clinical influence of telehealth visit. Evaluation of preliminary set of N = 100 telehealth cases were assessed for influence of telehealth on clinical reasoning of attending physicians regarding patient disposition. Results: The majority (67%; n = 90) of participants had at least minimal experience with telehealth care delivery, with an average of 1 -2 visits in teleneurology, and 3 -4 visits in telebehavioral cases. Providers rated their overall mean competency level in telehealth care delivery as 3.01/5.00 based on a 5 point "novice (1) to expert" (5) scale. Mean scores for providers perceived competency level in 7 evidence-based sub-categories for telehealth care delivery were self-reported as relatively low to mid-range values, ranging from 2.64 -3.57/5.00. Stepwise linear regression analysis of whether all providers "would recommend telehealth to their family and friends" revealed two predictors for model of best fit (n = 81; p < 0.000; R 2 = 0.598): 1) their percep-
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