Future Trends: AI & Telehealth
There are two trends that are moving informatics forward. With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing a rapid increase in the number of people receiving care remotely, U.S. physicians went from using telehealth for approximately 15% of their encounters in 2019 to more than 86% in 2021 (see Figure 3), and it has been expanding to provide care beyond the bedside in chronic disease management, triage, and follow-up.
Figure 3. U.S. physician telehealth adoption, 2019–2021 (CrossRiver Therapy, 2026; Magnet ABA, 2025).
The other big change is artificial intelligence – predictive modeling is increasingly being incorporated into EHRs to detect the threat of sepsis, determine fall risks and aid earlier clinical decision-making. For the nurse, it’s a competency that will only become more significant than it is today, and these competencies are listed above with emphasis on interoperability and data security.
References
CrossRiver Therapy. (2026). 49 telehealth statistics & telemedicine trends. https://www.crossrivertherapy.com/research/telehealth-statistics
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