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Abstract
One such major challenge is the accessibility to quality healthcare in rural and underserved areas in India, owing to the geographical barrier, lack of infrastructure, and shortage of healthcare professionals. Telemedicine, which uses digital technologies for remote health care services, has been proposed as a potential solution to overcome these gaps. This study investigates the role of telemedicine in private hospitals in Jaipur, Rajasthan, with regard to its impact on access, affordability, and quality of healthcare, especially for the rural population. A mixed methods design was used which incorporated both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection. The quantitative data were collected by using structured questionnaires based on validated instruments from previous telemedicine and healthcare access studies, which were administered to 300 patients, 30 healthcare providers, and 10 hospital administrators, who were asked about satisfaction, perceptions, and effectiveness of telemedicine. Semi-structured interviews and observational studies were used to collect qualitative data, which provided more in-depth information about experiences with telemedicine services. Descriptive statistics, t-tests, ANOVA and regression analysis, and thematic analysis were used to analyze the quantitative and qualitative data, respectively. The study revealed that telemedicine had a positive impact on healthcare access and patient satisfaction, especially in chronic disease management, but challenges such as digital illiteracy, Internet connectivity, and privacy concerns were also found. The paper concludes by suggesting ways in which these challenges can be overcome to further develop telemedicine services in India.
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This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Article Type: Research Article
J CONTEMP STUD EPIDEMIOL PUBLIC HEALTH, Volume 7, Issue 1, 2026, Article No: ep26004
https://doi.org/10.29333/jconseph/17856
Publication date: 03 Feb 2026
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Article Downloads: 4
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