Rural health is facing the same pressures as the healthcare landscape at large – only the more remote the area, the more acute the pain point. Slashed funding, increasing burnout, and scant staffing options force rural healthcare to do more with less. The setting is the perfect use case for the integration of technology support. But the same reasons rural health needs support from tools like ambient AI are the reasons that implementing the technology can be tricky.
BARRIERS TO ADOPTION
“With increased regulatory scrutiny expected in 2025, particularly around interoperability compliance and digital health accessibility, rural providers must leverage AI-driven automation, predictive analytics, and integrated virtual care platforms to sustain operations.”
– Doug Brown, Founder of Black Book Research (Newswire)
Despite the rapidly growing prevalence of AI solutions in healthcare, rural practitioners have been slow to adopt new technologies. Black Book Research’s recent 2025 Rural Healthcare IT Solutions Report found that 67% of rural healthcare providers face significant challenges with interoperability due to outdated systems and a lack of integration support.
Other barriers include inconsistent high-speed internet access, lack of funding, and overall resistance to change from providers who are already overwhelmed. Any technology implemented has to be well-equipped to overcome these challenges with a user-friendly design, proof of high adoption, flexible and scalable solutions, and comprehensive support for implementing and using the technology.
IDENTIFYING THE TRUE NEED FOR AI IN RURAL CARE
There are dozens of different applications for AI in healthcare, from predictive analytics to automated scheduling, but there is one use case that can make a massive difference for providers – ambient AI. Unobtrusive, accurate documentation support makes for easy adoption and impactful outcomes.
Named one of the five keys to fixing rural healthcare by the American Medical Association, tackling administrative burden for providers is critical. The AMA highlighted this need in a recent article, stating that rural health care should “[a]ddress workforce burdens that drive burnout and early retirements. This includes the two hours physicians waste on administrative burdens such as, prior authorization for every one hour they spend face to face with patients” (Henry).
Ambient AI tackles the heart of this problem, especially when combined with better care team support. Enabli Health delivers that unique solution to the market, naming it tech-enabled workforce support. These are care team members who are trained to use, and equipped with, ambient AI.
By combining on-site or remote team members with AI technology, staff can tackle documentation alongside other critical administrative and clinical support tasks, further alleviating the pressure from providers. In fact, in HealthTech’s article “How Can Rural Healthcare Organizations Benefit From AI?” documentation is the number one use case listed for AI in rural healthcare.
Comprehensive, consistent, and timely patient documentation is especially important when you consider that almost 4 in 10 rural medicaid enrollees under 65 have a diagnosed chronic condition (Euhus). Tasks that can be handled by a tech-enabled workforce, like pre-charting, can help improve the patient/provider experience by ensuring that all the necessary historical information is ready before an appointment.
HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT SOLUTION
Given the barriers to implementation in the rural setting, organizations should be seeking AI solutions that are:
- Easy to integrate
- Unobtrusive to existing workflows
- Have high adoption rates
- Boast robust customer support
Enabli Health provides an even simpler entry point to integrating new technologies. By onboarding care team support who are dedicated to leveraging AI solutions, tech-enabled staff can help alleviate existing burdens while ensuring the implementation of new technology goes smoothly, doubling their impact.
At Enabli Health, our tech-enabled workforce is already very familiar with the SpekeAI application. Our sister solution is the number one choice for providers when choosing ambient AI support. With the best customer support in the industry and multiple integration solutions, SpekeAI maintains consistently high adoption rates. But the beauty of Enabli Health’s customizable solutions is that our tech-enabled workforce is always able to leverage the technology of your choice.
Interested in adding a tech-enabled workforce to your team? Contact us.
Albert Henry, Tanya. “AMA Outlines 5 Keys to Fixing America’s Rural Health Crisis.” American Medical Association, 6 June 2024, www.ama-assn.org/public-health/population-health/ama-outlines-5-keys-fixing-america-s-rural-health-crisis.
“Black Book Research Releases 2025 Rural Healthcare IT Solutions Report Addressing Interoperability Challenges & Technology Gaps.” Newswire, 21 Feb. 2025, www.newswire.com/news/black-book-research-releases-2025-rural-healthcare-it-solutions-report-22524487.
Eastwood,Brian. “How Can Rural Healthcare Organizations Benefit from Ai?” Health Tech Magazine, 17 June 2025, healthtechmagazine.net/article/2025/06/how-can-rural-healthcare-organizations-benefit-ai.
Euhus, Rhiannon, et al. “5 Key Facts about Medicaid Coverage for People Living in Rural Areas.” KFF, 11 Aug. 2025, www.kff.org/medicaid/5-key-facts-about-medicaid-coverage-for-people-living-in-rural-areas/.
