Do UK Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) have sufficient guidelines and training to provide telehealth patient consultations?

Author:

Leone EnzaORCID,Eddison NicolaORCID,Healy AoifeORCID,Royse Carolyn,Chockalingam NachiappanORCID

Abstract

Abstract Objectives The COVID-19 pandemic caused a rapid shift to remote consultations. United Kingdom (UK) NHS Allied Health Professional (AHP) services may have been unprepared for telehealth implementation. This study explored these services’ organisational readiness regarding telehealth guidelines implementation and staff training. Methods A cross-sectional online survey exploring available telehealth guidelines and staff training was distributed among UK AHPs and AHP service managers between May and June 2021. Results 658 participants answered the survey (119 managers and 539 clinicians). Most services, in which telehealth was in place, had implemented telehealth guidelines (clinicians, 64%; managers, 82%), with most guidelines produced by the NHS staff who use them for their consultations. Most clinicians reported that guidelines had ambiguous areas (e.g., regarding protection from litigation and dealing with emergencies), whereas most managers reported the opposite opinion. Guidelines most frequently reported on appropriate telehealth technology and environment for staff and patients, while recommended consultation length and how to conduct telehealth with certain population groups were least reported. Clinicians lacked training in most telehealth aspects, while managers reported that staff training focused on telehealth software and hardware. For both clinicians and managers, training is needed on how to deal with emergencies during telehealth. Conclusions UK NHS AHP services are not fully equipped with clear and comprehensive guidelines and the skills to deliver telehealth. Vulnerable people are excluded from current guidelines, which may widen health inequalities and hinder the success of the NHS digital transformation. The absence of national guidelines highlights the need for uniform AHP telehealth guidelines.

Funder

Public Health England

Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC

Subject

Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health,Public Administration

Reference28 articles.

1. World Health Organization. Telemedicine: opportunities and developments in member states: report on the second Global survey on eHealth. World Health Organization; 2010. 93 p. https://www.who.int/goe/publications/goe_telemedicine_2010.pdf. Accessed 6 Feb 2022.

2. Bhaskar S, Bradley S, Chattu VK, Adisesh A, Nurtazina A, Kyrykbayeva S, et al. Telemedicine across the globe-position paper from the COVID-19 Pandemic Health System Resilience PROGRAM (REPROGRAM) International Consortium (Part 1). Front Public Health. 2020. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2020.556720.

3. Monaghesh E, Hajizadeh A. The role of telehealth during COVID-19 outbreak: a systematic review based on current evidence. BMC Public Health. 2020;20(1):1193. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12889-020-09301-4.

4. Dougall D, Buck D. My role in tackling health inequalities A framework for allied health professionals. 2021. www.kingsfund.org.uk.

5. Esper GJ, Sweeney RL, Winchell E, Duffell JM, Kier SC, Lukens HW, et al. Rapid systemwide implementation of outpatient telehealth in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. J Healthc Manag. 2020;65(6):443–52.

Cited by 6 articles. 订阅此论文施引文献 订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献

同舟云学术

1.学者识别学者识别

2.学术分析学术分析

3.人才评估人才评估

"同舟云学术"是以全球学者为主线,采集、加工和组织学术论文而形成的新型学术文献查询和分析系统,可以对全球学者进行文献检索和人才价值评估。用户可以通过关注某些学科领域的顶尖人物而持续追踪该领域的学科进展和研究前沿。经过近期的数据扩容,当前同舟云学术共收录了国内外主流学术期刊6万余种,收集的期刊论文及会议论文总量共计约1.5亿篇,并以每天添加12000余篇中外论文的速度递增。我们也可以为用户提供个性化、定制化的学者数据。欢迎来电咨询!咨询电话:010-8811{复制后删除}0370

www.globalauthorid.com

TOP

Copyright © 2019-2024 北京同舟云网络信息技术有限公司
京公网安备11010802033243号  京ICP备18003416号-3