Christine Thompson, a speech therapist, sits for a portrait in her office in Asheville. Thompson sees patients both in person and virtually. File photo Jacob Biba / Public Press

Telehealth is sometimes called telemedicine. Telehealth lets your health care provider care for you without an in-person office visit. It is done primarily online with internet access on your computer, tablet or smartphone.

Telehealth is often promoted as a solution to increasing access to health care.

But it isn’t without challenges. An estimated 4 million North Carolinians don’t have access to reliable broadband service, which is how many access telehealth services. This particularly affects rural residents, many of whom also live in communities that tend to suffer most from a lower supply of health professionals.

We’d like to learn how effective is it without a reliable internet connection, how it’s used in various regions of N.C., what’s good about it and what doesn’t work so well.

Please fill out this short survey by Dec. 1 and tell us your stories about how you use (or don’t) telehealth in North Carolina. Your answers may be used in upcoming reporting. This survey should take 3-5 minutes to complete. Thank you!

Have you used telehealth?

We want to know why or why not. Your answers may be used in future reporting on this important issue.

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