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During the past decade, information technologies have addressed the need for accessibility and cost-effectiveness to provide therapy services and improve the quality of rural health care. Occupational Therapists (OTs) work with individuals to achieve their self-care goals however access to these services is especially problematic in rural areas of the US. In the State of New Mexico, there are 30 counties out of a total of 33 deemed medically underserved with little or no access to OT services. Tele-Rehabilitation has been credited as providing greater cost effectiveness in treatment of the elderly population with management of chronic conditions. The use of videoconferencing in the provision of occupational therapy services is an appropriate method of providing individualized treatment for patients in their homes. Ongoing, high-quality research regarding Tele-OT in rural New Mexico will support the development and assessment of the quality of these services as they relate to improved patient outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objectives of any healthcare system are multifaceted and complex in today's everchanging world. This paper will focus on healthcare delivery as it relates to the concepts of funding, patient-centered care and physician shortages within the systems of Canada, the United Kingdom (UK) and France. Of great concern in the United States is the fact that healthcare is not universal. There are currently more than 43 million Americans who are uninsured. Poor funding affects patient access to care and the patient-centered focus of the U.S. healthcare delivery system. Collaborative patient-centered practice is a method that facilitates health care professionals working together and with their patients. Suggestions for reform in the United States will be discussed as they relate to the most successful aspects of each of the healthcare delivery systems in Canada, France, and the United Kingdom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]