Telemedicine in the correctional setting: A scoping review

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Digital Health
• Correctional Medicine

Background:

• Access to healthcare services for inmates in correctional settings is often limited and challenging.
• Telemedicine presents a viable alternative for delivering health services within prisons.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically review existing evidence on the application of telemedicine for healthcare delivery in correctional facilities.
• To identify common telemedicine interventions, disciplines served, and study methodologies.

Main Methods:

• A comprehensive literature search was conducted across seven major databases in April 2018.
• 36 peer-reviewed publications were included after initial screening of 1147 articles.
• Study designs included descriptive, costing, experimental, mixed methods, and qualitative approaches.

Main Results:

• The majority of included studies (53%) were published between 2010-2018, with a significant portion from the USA (64%).
• Synchronous videoconferencing (58%) was the most common telemedicine intervention.
• Telemedicine was primarily utilized for mental health (13 studies) and ophthalmology (4 studies).

Conclusions:

• Telemedicine interventions show promise as a valuable method for improving healthcare access for inmates.
• The effectiveness is contingent on appropriate implementation within correctional environments.
• Further research may explore cost-effectiveness and broader applications.