Telehealth is not a single technology or a single service model. It is an umbrella term that encompasses a growing family of care delivery approaches, each suited to different clinical contexts and patient populations. Understanding the different types of telehealth is essential for any organization designing or expanding a virtual care program.
Telemedicine: Real-Time Video Visits
When most people hear “telehealth,” they picture a video visit with a doctor. This model, often called telemedicine or synchronous telehealth, is the most widely adopted type. It enables real-time, face-to-face clinical encounters for primary care, urgent care, specialty consultations, and more. SecureVideo was purpose-built for telemedicine, with HIPAA-compliant video sessions that work on any device, support screen sharing for reviewing imaging, and integrate AI-assisted documentation tools.
Teletherapy: Mental and Behavioral Health
Teletherapy is the delivery of mental health, substance use, and behavioral health services via video or audio. It has become one of the fastest-growing types of telehealth, driven by a national shortage of mental health providers and expanded insurance parity. SecureVideo’s teletherapy platform includes waiting room customization, session recording options, and AI-powered session notes to help therapists spend more time with patients and less time on paperwork.
Teledentistry: Oral Health Goes Virtual
Teledentistry allows dentists to conduct preliminary assessments, review imaging, provide oral health education, and follow up with patients via video. It is particularly valuable for screening patients in underserved communities, triaging dental pain in urgent care settings, and supporting patients with mobility limitations. AI diagnostic tools can now analyze dental radiographs and intraoral photographs to assist with caries detection and treatment planning.
Store-and-Forward: Asynchronous Telehealth
Not all telehealth requires a live connection. Store-and-forward telehealth allows patients or referring providers to transmit clinical data, images, or videos to a specialist asynchronously for review and response. Dermatology, radiology, ophthalmology, and pathology are all well-established store-and-forward specialties. AI image analysis tools are transforming this modality, enabling algorithms to flag suspicious lesions or abnormal findings before the specialist reviews the case. The Telehealth Resource Centers offer detailed guidance on implementing store-and-forward programs.
Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM)
Remote patient monitoring uses connected devices to collect physiological data from patients in their homes and transmit it to clinical teams for review. Blood pressure cuffs, continuous glucose monitors, pulse oximeters, and smart scales are among the most common RPM devices. AI-powered analytics sit behind these data streams, identifying trends and triggering alerts when values fall outside pre-defined parameters. RPM is particularly valuable in managing heart failure, COPD, hypertension, and diabetes.
mHealth: Care in Your Pocket
Mobile health (mHealth) applications extend care through smartphones and wearables. From AI-powered symptom checkers to medication adherence reminders to digital therapeutics for anxiety, mHealth tools are increasingly integrated into comprehensive telehealth programs. When connected to a clinical platform, mHealth data can inform virtual visits with richer context.
Choosing the Right Type for Your Practice
The right types of telehealth for your practice depend on your specialty, patient population, payer mix, and clinical workflows. Many organizations find success starting with synchronous telemedicine for a single use case, then expanding to RPM or asynchronous services as staff capacity and technology infrastructure mature.
SecureVideo supports multiple types of telehealth in one platform. Schedule a consultation to explore which combination is the best fit for your organization.