Review Article: The Role of Telemedicine in Expanding Pharmaceutical Accessibility Between Rural and Urban Communities / Artikel Tinjauan: Peran Telemedisin dalam Memperluas Aksesibilitas Farmasi antara Masyarakat Pedesaan dan Perkotaan

Telemedicine and telepharmacy play an important role in expanding access to pharmaceutical services, particularly in rural areas that face shortages of pharmacy personnel and healthcare facilities. However, comparative syntheses focusing on the differences in telemedicine implementation between rural and urban communities in Indonesia remain limited. This literature review aims to analyze the role of telemedicine in improving pharmaceutical service accessibility and to compare its implementation between rural and urban communities. The review was conducted systematically using PubMed and Google Scholar databases with the keywords “telemedicine, rural and urban telepharmacy, and telemedicine accessibility.” From 540 identified articles, 11 articles were selected based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. The findings indicate that telemedicine facilitates medication consultations, e-prescriptions, patient education, and chronic disease monitoring through various digital platforms. Several services, such as WhatsApp, Halodoc, and other digital health applications, have supported the improvement of pharmaceutical service accessibility. A significant gap was identified between telemedicine implementation in urban and rural areas, where urban communities demonstrated more optimal implementation due to better technological infrastructure and digital literacy, while rural communities continued to face limitations related to internet connectivity, healthcare facilities, and technology adoption. This literature review concludes that telemedicine significantly contributes to improving efficiency and promoting equitable access to pharmaceutical services between rural and urban communities.

Telemedisin dan telefarmasi berperan penting dalam memperluas akses layanan kefarmasian, terutama di wilayah pedesaan yang kekurangan tenaga dan fasilitas farmasi. Namun, sintesis komparatif yang berfokus pada perbedaan penerapan telemedisin antara masyarakat pedesaan dan perkotaan di Indonesia masih terbatas. Literatur review ini bertujuan untuk menganalisis peran telemedisin dalam meningkatkan aksesibilitas layanan farmasi serta membandingkan penerapannya di masyarakat pedesaan dan perkotaan. Kajian dilakukan secara sistematis melalui basis data PubMed dan Google Scholar dengan kata kunci “telemedisin, telefarmasi pedesaan dan perkotaan, serta aksesibilitas telemedis”. Dari 540 artikel yang ditemukan, 11 artikel dipilih berdasarkan kriteria inklusi dan eksklusi. Hasil menunjukkan bahwa telemedisin mempermudah konsultasi obat, e-resep, edukasi pasien, serta pemantauan penyakit kronis melalui berbagai platform digital. Beberapa layanan seperti WhatsApp, Halodoc, dan aplikasi kesehatan daring lainnya telah mendukung peningkatan akses layanan farmasi. Terdapat kesenjangan yang signifikan antara penerapan telemedisin di wilayah perkotaan dan pedesaan, di mana masyarakat perkotaan memiliki implementasi yang lebih optimal karena didukung oleh infrastruktur teknologi dan literasi digital yang lebih baik, sedangkan masyarakat pedesaan masih menghadapi keterbatasan jaringan internet, fasilitas kesehatan, dan kemampuan adaptasi teknologi. Literatur riview ini menyimpulkan bahwa telemedisin berkontribusi signifikan dalam meningkatkan efisiensi serta pemerataan akses layanan farmasi antara masyarakat pedesaan dan perkotaan.