The Impact of Telehealth Integration on Rural Health care Professional Retention and Job Satisfaction

Abstract

Purpose:

Rural communities face significant challenges in recruiting and retaining health care professionals (HCP) due to high workloads, lack of financial incentives, and demanding occupational requirements. Recent research shows that telehealth has the potential to enhance holistic care quality and reduce barriers to patient care; however, its potential to impact rural HCP retention remains unexplored. The purpose of this review was to assess the relationship between telehealth and rural HCP professional satisfaction and retention.

Methods:

A systematic review was conducted following the Cochrane guidelines. MEDLINE ALL and Embase were searched from January 2014 to February 2025. Studies assessing the use of telehealth in rural health care settings and reporting on retention rates or professional satisfaction were included. Due to significant expected heterogeneity, studies were analyzed narratively.

Findings:

The search identified 1,678 unique citations, with 38 studies proceeding to full-text review. Four studies were included in the final analysis: two mixed-methods studies and two qualitative studies. Each study assessed a different telehealth intervention, including tele-emergency, wound care, and general practice. Job satisfaction was reported in three studies, with personal fulfillment and professional development commonly reported. Retention was reported in two studies, with minimal actual impacts on retention but with HCPs perceiving considerable potential. Importantly, there were no quantitative measures of job satisfaction or retention reported.

Conclusions:

Despite telehealth being lauded as a way to improve retention and professional satisfaction in rural health care settings, there are very few studies assessing these outcomes. Though telehealth qualitatively improved professional satisfaction, there were minimal impacts on retention.