Read a selection of your colleagues’ responses and respond to at least two of your colleagues on two different days. Expand upon your colleague’s posting or offer an alternative perspective on the use of digital health.

1. Selected Digital Technology

The selected digital innovation is telehealth. Digital innovations, including telehealth, offer more significant opportunities to improve the quality of healthcare delivery. According to Haleem et al. (2021), telehealth systems enhance the quality of healthcare delivery to patients. Regular physical hospital visits are more likely to be expensive for patients with chronic health issues who require to see their care providers often. Telehealth technology bridges the gap by allowing healthcare providers to interact with their patients virtually. Haleem et al. (2021) argued that telehealth systems enable patients and healthcare providers to interact comfortably and conveniently. It is possible that healthcare providers can increase the level at which they engage with the patients.

Challenges in Adopting Telehealth

Telehealth systems offer many advantages in terms of improving the quality of healthcare. However, most healthcare facilities have not adopted the technology because of the high initial costs. Establishing a telehealth system in a healthcare facility is costly, so healthcare institutions must be strategic about this process. Furthermore, the other challenges involve getting the right vendors and system compatibility (Khoshrounejad et al., 2021). The healthcare institution must have a reliable vendor and system maintenance team. The other challenge relates to data privacy and protection. In the current digital error, sharing data through the telehealth system could compromise some of the patients’ privacy, raising concerns about the ethical effectiveness of the technological move. Furthermore, there are potential disparities likely to arise with the implementation of a telehealth system; the old and deaf who cannot hear and converse through telephone conversations may be disproportionately affected. 

Opportunities

The telehealth system presents many potential benefits to healthcare institutions. The emergence of artificial intelligence means that telehealth systems can be linked to health monitoring devices to obtain real-time patient data and use such in making appropriate clinical decisions (Otto et al., 2020). Significantly, patients from remote regions will likely benefit from the telehealth system since they can access care directly from their homes (Khoshrounejad et al., 2021). According to Haleem et al. (2021), telehealth allows the exchange of information over a long distance, becoming a game changer in the healthcare sector. Overcrowding at the emergency department can be something of the past with the effective adoption of telehealth.

References

Haleem, A., Javaid, M., Singh, R. P., & Suman, R. (2021). Telemedicine for healthcare: Capabilities, features, barriers, and applications. Sensors International, 2, 100117. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sintl.2021.100117

Khoshrounejad, F., Hamednia, M., Mehrjerd, A., Pichaghsaz, S., Jamalirad, H., Sargolzaei, M., Hoseini, B., & Aalaei, S. (2021). Telehealth-based services during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review of features and challenges. Frontiers in Public Health, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.711762

Otto, L., Harst, L., Timpel, P., Wollschlaeger, B., Richter, P., & Schlieter, H. (2020). Defining and delimitating telemedicine and related terms – an ontology-based classification. Studies in Health Technology and Informatics, 268, 113–122. doi:10.3233/SHTI200010

2. Week 6 Discussion:  Main Post

Digital innovations in healthcare are becoming part of the norm due to their numerous advantages, and telehealth harnesses the convenience of digital technology, making it a transformative force in modern healthcare. Telehealth entails remote healthcare services via telecommunications technology, such as virtual consultations, telemedicine, and remote monitoring. Implementing digital innovation, such as telehealth in healthcare organizations, promotes efficiency and patient outcomes.

Challenges 

 In my practice, the adoption of telehealth presents some challenges in approaching administrative tasks due to “electronic health records.” Technological integration challenges faced the organization as existing systems could not support modern EHR platform functionalities, causing performance concerns and compatibility issues, and the facility was forced to invest a lot to upgrade the infrastructure and train staff members for a smooth implementation.

Another challenge was change resistance, where healthcare professionals were barriers to adopting telehealth technologies. Since nurses were used to traditional documentation approaches, they felt that using digital technologies such as electronic records could have been more convenient and were hesitant to accept EHRs (Gajarawala&Pelkowski, 2021). The organization had to invest many resources to overcome the resistance by implementing change management strategies, training programs, and continuous support to aid the staff in embracing digital workflows. Regulatory compliance issues also posed a challenge in adopting digital innovations, such as adhering to HIPAA to ensure security and patient confidentiality and the regulatory landscape and implementing compliance required collaboration with others such as legal experts, healthcare providers, and IT specialists to ensure compliance with regulatory standards.

Opportunities 

 Adopting telehealth technologies brought about opportunities for operational efficiency and fostered patient care, as the EHRs helped streamline workflows and patient information became more accessible, allowing informed decisions among multidisciplinary teams and promoting care coordination. The telehealth solutions also allowed patients to have an active role by engaging in mobile health apps and patient portals, helping them access information, communicate, and be part of decision-making (Sensmeier, 2020). Using telehealth provided insights into treatment outcomes, patient populations, and disease trends via AI and data analytics and helped identify patterns, customize treatment plans, and predict patient risks, which enhanced clinical outcomes.

 Another opportunity caused by the implementation of telehealth technologies was its expansion and convenience, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, whereby telehealth platforms allowed for remote consultations and monitored patients remotely. The telehealth expansion enhanced care access and coordination and lessened disparities in healthcare, allowing flexibility when delivering care (Mahoney, 2020). Telehealth implementation also facilitated specialized consultation services and care to patients in geographically underserved and remote areas, and telehealth platforms allow patients to access expert consultations and get medical opinions without traveling to the limited specialized healthcare facilities.

 The implementation has enhanced healthcare accessibility, which minimizes the burden of costly travel expenses and wasting time seeking specialized care. Telehealth has inspired more collaboration between healthcare providers and other specialists, allowing multidisciplinary patient care that supports accessing various experts. Telehealth in the organization has expanded access and allowed equitable distribution of care and healthcare resources, enhancing satisfaction, quality, and better patient outcomes.

Conclusion 

 Digital innovations like telehealth enhance operational efficiency and patient outcomes, and adopting such innovations presents both opportunities and challenges for nursing practice. While potential challenges may include financial constraints, technological integration, and regulatory compliance, the benefits include patient engagement, data-driven insights, and streamlined workflow. Embracing telehealth’s transformative potential can drive positive change and quality healthcare services.

References

Gajarawala, S. N., &Pelkowski, J. N. (2021). Telehealth benefits and barriers. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 17(2), 218–221. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nurpra.2020.09.013

Mahoney, M. F. (2020). Telehealth, telemedicine, and related technologic platforms. Journal of Wound, Ostomy & Continence Nursing, 47(5), 439–444. https://doi.org/10.1097/won.0000000000000694

Sensmeier, J. (2020). Enhancing the patient and provider experience through telehealth. Nursing Management, 51(11), 8–15. https://doi.org/10.1097/01.numa.0000719376.64125.a0