Simulation-Based Teaching of Telemedicine for Future Users of Teleconsultation and Tele-Expertise: Feasibility Study

Abstract

Background Health care professionals worldwide are increasingly using telemedicine in their daily clinical practice. However, there is still a lack of dedicated education and training even though it is needed to improve the quality of the diverse range of telemedicine activities. Simulation-based training may be a useful tool in telemedicine education and training delivery. Objective This study aims to assess the feasibility and acceptability of simulation-based telemedicine training. Methods We assessed five telemedicine training sessions conducted in a simulation laboratory. The training was focused on video teleconsultations between a patient and a health care professional. The assessment included the participants’ satisfaction and attitudes toward the training. Results We included 29 participants in total. Participant satisfaction was high (mean score 4.9 of 5), and those that took part stated the high applicability of the simulation-based training to their telemedicine practices (mean score 4.6 of 5). They also stated that they intended to use telemedicine in the future (mean score 4.5 of 5). Conclusions Simulation-based training of telemedicine dedicated to video teleconsultation was feasible and showed high satisfaction from participants. However, it remains difficult to scale for a high number of health care professionals.

Telehealth Education in Allied Health Care and Nursing: Web-Based Cross-Sectional Survey of Students’ Perceived Knowledge, Skills, Attitudes, and Experience

“…The second competence level skills refers to the know-how. In telehealth, it requires health care professionals to organize and apply their knowledge to conduct physical assessments via telehealth, make perceptive observation-based examinations, and communicate effectively in a nontraditional clinical setting [5,10,11,15,16,19,23,24,[26][27][28][29]. In the performance or show level, professionals demonstrate their ability to select, implement, and use appropriate telehealth tools in a simulated or controlled environment.…”

Narrative review of telemedicine applications in decentralized research

“…Examples of specialized clinical telemedicine training initiatives are found in the biomedical literature but are not widely implemented. These initiatives include specialized medical education curricula [ 29 ], simulation-based training experiences [ 31 ], and specialized initiatives such as digital health or e-health training centers [ 32 ]. Some training programs and courses prepare investigators to use telemedicine in research from a general standpoint [ 33 ].…”

Medical students’ and educators’ opinions of teleconsultation in practice and undergraduate education: a UK-based mixed-methods study

“…Continuous educational research is conducted to further develop evidence-informed education for undergraduate medical students including teleconsultation and the more broader realm of telehealth (27,87,88). Discussion at medical schools and clinical placements should be encouraged including the impact of teleconsultations on patient confidentiality and safety, the accessibility to healthcare, the assessment of the clinical appropriateness of teleconsultations, and the implications on clinical workflows.…”

“…Whilst the former constitutes the education on medical principles such as high-quality, person-centered, ethical care, the latter specifically advocates for an adaptation of these principles in remote consultation settings (29,34,38,70,(84)(85)(86). By adding practical learning experiences in both simulated and clinical learning environments (24,27,87), future practitioners will be able to adequately analyse the benefits and risks of utilising teleconsultation, learn different strategies for communicating effectively and safely in remote settings, and explore discipline-specific applications of teleconsultations (73).…”