The landscape of healthcare delivery has been transformed by digital innovation, and as we move further into the connected health era, the need for rigorous research and meaningful dissemination has never been more critical. The Society for Education and the Advancement of Research in Connected Health (SEARCH) will be holding SEARCH 2026 – The National Telehealth Research Symposium, June 2-3, 2026, in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. It will showcase connected health efforts, strategies, and partnerships, specifically those that focus on the research of telemedicine, telehealth, eHealth, mHealth, and other healthcare technologies.
In the rapidly evolving world of telehealth, research dissemination serves as the essential bridge between innovation and implementation. While countless healthcare organizations and researchers are pioneering new approaches to virtual care, these breakthroughs often remain siloed without proper platforms for sharing insights, validating methodologies, and translating findings into practice. SEARCH 2026 provides that critical forum where empirical evidence meets real-world application, ensuring that telehealth advances are built on a foundation of scientific rigor rather than trial and error.
The imperative for research dissemination in telehealth extends beyond academic curiosity - it directly impacts patient outcomes, access to healthcare, and system sustainability. When researchers share their findings on telehealth efficacy, patient engagement strategies, or technology implementation challenges, they enable other institutions to avoid costly mistakes, adopt proven practices, and accelerate the delivery of quality care to underserved populations. This collaborative approach to knowledge-sharing is particularly crucial as telehealth becomes an integral component of healthcare infrastructure rather than an emergency response measure.
Hosted by SEARCH, this symposium brings together the multidisciplinary community that drives telehealth forward - clinicians, researchers, informaticists, policymakers, and technology developers. SEARCH’s on-site partner this year is the Center for Virtual Care Value and Excellence (ViVE) headed by Principal Investigator Saif Khairat, PhD, MD Associate Professor and Beerstecher-Blackwell Distinguished Term Scholar at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. SEARCH also welcomes back our partner from the previous 2 SEARCH meetings the American Heart Association’s Center for Telehealth headed by Kristina Wait, MEd the National Senior Director, Center for Telehealth & Professional Education Hub and Christina Coleman, MSPA, MPH Senior Program Manager.
This convergence of perspectives ensures that research dissemination isn't merely about publishing findings but about fostering dialogue that shapes the next generation of telehealth solutions. The connections forged at SEARCH 2026 will catalyze collaborative studies, inform policy decisions, and ultimately strengthen the evidence base that supports telehealth's expanded role in modern medicine.
The timing of SEARCH 2026 couldn't be more significant. As healthcare systems navigate post-pandemic realities, questions about telehealth's long-term value, reimbursement models, and optimal use cases demand answers grounded in robust research. This symposium offers researchers the opportunity to present their latest findings on patient satisfaction, clinical effectiveness, cost-benefit analyses, and technological innovations—insights that will guide healthcare leaders in making informed decisions about telehealth investments and integration strategies.
Whether you're conducting groundbreaking research on remote patient monitoring, exploring digital health access, or evaluating new modalities of virtual care delivery, SEARCH 2026 is your platform to contribute to the collective knowledge base that will define telehealth's future. Join us in Chapel Hill next June to ensure your research doesn't just advance scholarship - it advances care. Visit searchsociety.org/search2026 to learn more and submit your work for consideration.
