Telehealth Interventions Designed for Women: an Evidence Map

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Telehealth employs technology to connect patients to the right healthcare resources at the right time. Women are high utilizers of healthcare with genderspecific health issues that may benefit from the convenience and personalization of telehealth. Thus, we produced an evidence map describing the quantity, distribution, and characteristics of evidence assessing the effectiveness of telehealth services designed for women. METHODS: We searched MEDLINE ® (via PubMed ® ) and Embase ® from inception through March 20, 2018. We screened systematic reviews (SRs), randomized trials, and quasi-experimental studies using predetermined eligibility criteria. Articles meeting inclusion criteria were identified for data abstraction. To assess emerging trends, we also conducted a targeted search of ClinicalTrials.gov. RESULTS: Two hundred thirty-four primary studies and three SRs were eligible for abstraction. We grouped studies into focused areas of research: maternal health (n = 96), prevention (n = 46), disease management (n = 63), family planning (n = 9), high-risk breast cancer assessment (n = 10), intimate partner violence (n = 7), and mental health (n = 3). Most interventions focused on phone as the primary telehealth modality and featured healthcare team-to-patient communication and were limited in duration (e.g., < 12 weeks). Few interventions were conducted with older women (≥ 60 years) or in racially/ ethnically diverse populations. There are few SRs in this area and limited evidence regarding newer telehealth modalities such as mobile-based applications or short message service/texting. Targeted search of clinical.trials.gov yielded 73 ongoing studies that show a shift in the use of non-telephone modalities. DISCUSSION: Our systematic evidence map highlights gaps in the existing literature, such as a lack of studies in key women's health areas (intimate partner violence, mental health), and a dearth of relevant SRs. With few existing SRs in this literature, there is an opportunity for examining effects, efficiency, and acceptability across studies to inform efforts at implementing telehealth for women.

A systematic review of internet-based interventions for women with chronic pain

“…Internet-based interventions make it possible to tailor healthcare considering gender-specific healthcare needs. According to a recent review, there is a need to examine the effects, efficiency and acceptability of telehealth for women to inform efforts to implement it (Goldstein et al., 2018). In our review, we focused on the effects of internet-based interventions for women with chronic pain in order to analyse the options, results and methodological quality of research.…”

“…Women are high utilisers of healthcare. Considering biological and sociocultural characteristics, including specific work and family-related demands, they have gender-specific healthcare needs that may benefit from specific internet-based interventions (Goldstein et al., 2018). In this regard, performing a gender analysis is relevant to determine the effectiveness of internet-based interventions, which may lead women to adopt a more proactive behaviour in the treatment, maintenance and follow-up of their pain.…”

Coordinating Care for Reproductive Health Malignancies in the Veterans' Health Administration: Promising Practices, Ongoing Challenges, and Future Research

“…87 VA recently commissioned and published an evidence map on telehealth services designed for women, with a section dedicated to using telehealth for high-risk breast cancer assessment. 88 However, the authors note that none of the studies in this section were conducted in VA. The authors further note that there is a dearth of studies examining use of telehealth in women aged 60 years and older or the intersection between telehealth use and patient race and ethnicity.…”

Videoconferencing-Based Telemental Health: Important Questions for the COVID-19 Era From Clinical and Patient-Centered Perspectives

“…There is limited data on the safety and efficacy of telemental health treatment for individuals who actively experience intimate partner violence (IPV) [ 44 ]. A systematic review of studies on using V-TMH for people who have experienced IPV only found a small number of studies, and most of these studies focused on women [ 44 ]. Other such studies on telehealth were designed for women in domestic violence shelters or mental health clinics [ 45 , 46 ].…”