Caring for Our Community: Telehealth Interventions as a Promising Practice for Addressing Population Health Disparities of LGBTQ+ Communities in Health Care Settings

Abstract

While the United States has seen social and policy-based progress in the past two decades, the divisive political climate in the United States toward LGBTQ+ individuals highlights the prevalence of homophobia and transphobia that continues to harm and marginalize these communities. Within the context of health care, LGBTQ+ individuals face discrimination and mistreatment, further perpetuating a community narrative of mistrust in the health care system at large. Despite well-documented evidence of population-specific health needs and risks, LGBTQ+ individuals report less utilization of primary care than their heterosexual and cisgender counterparts. Initial studies of LGBTQ+ individuals’ engagement in telehealth interventions have largely focused within the realm of mental and behavioral health. Utilizing tenants and results seen in previous studies conducted regarding LGBTQ+ individual engagement with mental and behavioral telehealth interventions, this article explores the potential of utilizing telehealth as an interventional tool for addressing LGBTQ+ health disparities and reduced engagement within a primary care setting. Taking into consideration cost, geographic diversity, and implementation concerns, telehealth targeted toward LGBTQ+ individuals in a primary care setting could prove to be an effective method for reaching more LGBTQ+ individuals and providing them with population-specific, culturally-competent care.