University Clinical Health's (UCH) has announced a telehealth implementation plan which includes establishing a telemedicine network as early as this month. As a multi-specialty physician group which also includes primary care, UCH has sufficient infrastructure and reach to provide specialist services to areas of rural Tennessee.

The network will initially include Memphis-based dermatologists, rheumatologists, hematologists, and behavioral health providers treating patients at family medicine clinics in rural West Tennessee via video conferencing software which utilize high resolution cameras. UCH's electronic health system will allow for seamless integration of the patient's health record between sites and will allow for real time updates from site-to-site via a fully integrated electronic health record ("EHR"). This will later expand to include additional specialists from the group which encompasses 130 physicians and covers 18 specialty areas.

Additionally, UCH plans to partner with other Tennessee-based healthcare organizations to provide telemedicine services across the state. Patient populations in provider shortage areas soon will have access to qualified healthcare professionals via UCH's physician network according to a recent UCH news release.