American Heart Association and UNC-Chapel Hill Partner to Advance Telehealth Research and Implementation

The American Heart Association Center for Telehealth and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill Center for Virtual Care Value and Excellence (UNC-Chapel Hill ViVE) have announced a strategic collaboration to advance telehealth innovation and patient care. With telehealth now accounting for 23% of all healthcare encounters nationwide, the partnership seeks to develop comprehensive frameworks for virtual care implementation and evaluation.

The joint initiative will focus on several key objectives, including generating real-world knowledge, developing evidence-based resources, and exploring emerging technologies like artificial intelligence to improve healthcare outcomes. Dr. Saif Khairat, director of the UNC-Chapel Hill ViVE, emphasized the collaboration's goal of bridging laboratory discoveries with practical, patient-centered care solutions.

Through this partnership, the organizations will work to create educational resources, support integrated telehealth care models, and expand scientific dissemination. The collaboration represents a significant step in addressing current telehealth challenges, particularly in developing sophisticated, patient-focused virtual care delivery systems that emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dr. Lee Schwamm from the American Heart Association noted that the partnership will enhance telehealth education and training for current and future healthcare professionals, ultimately improving connected care through innovative educational approaches.

The collaboration aims to ensure that telehealth continues to evolve as a critical component of modern healthcare, with a focus on accessibility, quality, and patient-centered care across diverse healthcare settings.