New Technologies in Distance Education to Increase Access to Rural Health Care

Abstract

The inherent uniqueness of using new technologies for distance education is in their multi-purpose uses. The added advantage of new technologies in distance education is not only in its ability to deliver quality health education to rural areas, but in educating instructors in academic medical health centers about the problems physicians, nurses, and allied health professionals face in rural practice leading to new academic-community partnerships and new learning organizations helping to eliminate barriers to rural health care. Beginning with a brief overview of the types of new technologies and their uses in rural areas by several federally funded projects, and followed by a closer look at the Maine Electronic Classroom, this article explores the advantages of new technologies in distance education beyond the obvious extension of the traditional classroom.