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.
- CrossRiver Therapy. (2026). 49 telehealth statistics & telemedicine trends. https://www.crossrivertherapy.com/research/telehealth-statistics
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