Table 1.

Telehealth terms and definitions essential to implementing telehealth.

Term	Definition
Telemedicine	“The use of telecommunications and information technologies for the provision of medicine at a distance.”9
Telehealth	“Telehealth is a collection of means or methods for enhancing health care, public health, and health education delivery and support using telecommunications technologies.”8
Telerehabilitation	The delivery of rehabilitation services using telehealth technologies, encompassing a range of clinical services from patient evaluation through patient care management.11
Synchronous communication	“A mode of communication where the transfer takes place simultaneously. Examples include real time videoconferencing or standard telephone calls.”9
Real time videoconferencing	An encounter where both parties are available and interacting simultaneously by videoconferencing.9
Asynchronous communication	Communication over a period of time, rather than simultaneously (eg, secure patient messaging, forwarding of imaging results).9
Telecommunications	Transmission and reception of voice, video, or other data over a distance. Telecommunications can be from one person to another or broadcast from one person to many people.9