Grant: Master's Award: Canada Graduate Scholarships

Minimal research has been conducted on patient and provider perspectives of telehealth specifically within rural emergency departments. Concern for a tailored, user-friendly telehealth service is echoed by many articles in the literature, which presupposes accounting for telehealth users' concerns and input. The adoption of a service that is efficacious and can be used to its full potential necessitates an exploration of patient and provider experiences using telehealth. The understanding and insight afforded by this study can help to uncover facilitators and barriers to a successful implementation of telehealth in a way that maximizes the overall benefit of the service and improves patient health outcomes. It is my aim that a practical foundation for decision making can be established by means of a thorough, concise understanding of telehealth users' experiences using the service. The support for decision-makers will hopefully spur meaningful discussion for a systems-wide application of telehealth services in order to increase equitable access to appropriate health care, especially within rural geographies. It is my hope that the implementation of telehealth can replicate the findings and benefits that are often recounted in the literature. However, the full potential of telehealth and its benefits can only be realized alongside a tailored, successful implementation. As such, my objective is to engage patients and health care providers as key stakeholder groups that can provide valuable input for the successful application and uptake of telehealth services.