Disconnected: How the Digital Divide Undermines Telehealth's Promise

Telehealth has emerged as a transformative force in health care, offering unprecedented convenience, flexibility, and access. However, its benefits remain unevenly distributed, particularly among low-income, rural, older, and non-English-speaking populations. This literature review explores how telehealth's reliance on digital infrastructure, such as broadband access, device ownership, and digital literacy, can create new barriers that risk deepening existing health disparities. Drawing on recent studies, the review highlights how demographic and socioeconomic factors intersect with digital exclusion, limiting equitable engagement with virtual care. To fulfill telehealth's promise as a tool for health equity, systemic efforts must prioritize inclusive design, infrastructure investment, and culturally responsive support. Emergency nurses, as key facilitators of care transitions, play a critical role in identifying digital barriers and ensuring that all patients are equipped to participate in telehealth-based follow-up care.