Telehealth: Rethinking healthcare roles for smarter care

Abstract

Purpose A pilot was conducted to examine the utility and value of using video-conference equipment for outpatient clinics in the remote West Coast District Health Board. Method Video-conference equipment, already installed in Greymouth Hospital and Buller Health outpatient clinics, was adjusted for optimal effectiveness. Clinicians were invited to participate. Clinics were booked for five months. Participants included seven clinicians from six specialisations, 51 patients, 17 patient companions, clinic co -ordinator, project team of four and governance group of 11. Data were gathered by means of interviews with clinicians, clinic utilisation reports, questionnaires from patients and their companions, minutes of project meetings and discussions with managers. Findings Telehealth appointments are different from ‘usual’ outpatient clinic appointments. The equipment changes the way a clinic is run, the dynamics between the patient and clinician are different and criteria for booking patients are different. This resulted in rethinking roles for clinicians (determining who is appropriate for telehealth), and development of a new telehealth co-ordinator role that spans the region in which telehealth operates. Conclusions A new role of telehealth co-ordinator is proposed in which there are new functions and activities (clinical, support and administrative) that incorporate training, nambiguous booking of telehealth clinics, and advanced regional support to embed telehealth as ‘business as usual.’