Improving telehealth education and training: A needs assessment of healthcare providers and trainees

Abstract

Telehealth utilization has increased dramatically since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. There are many positive impacts of this shift to telehealth, including increasing access to care and reducing patient burden. However, healthcare providers report several consistent challenges that limit their ability to deliver telehealth, such as effective communication, technological difficulties, and difficulty performing physical examinations. To address these concerns, it is necessary to integrate telehealth education and training into healthcare professional training programs and healthcare systems. While many institutions have implemented telehealth education and training since the start of the pandemic, there is little consistency in the content, duration, and activities used in these interventions. The aim of this research was to assess healthcare providers\u27 and trainees\u27 experiences with telehealth education/training, needs for additional education/training, and self-efficacy in delivering telehealth. In Study 1, focus groups and interviews were conducted with licensed providers. In Study 2, samples of licensed providers and current trainees were recruited to participate in an online questionnaire including open-ended questions about telehealth education/training experiences and needs. These results were analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis. Findings from this research revealed that providers are generally confident in their ability to use telehealth but that there is room for improvement in existing telehealth education/training interventions. Providers and trainees would benefit from education/training that focuses on common challenges in telehealth visits such as patient-provider communication and troubleshooting technological issues, particularly experiential training (e.g., standardized patient visits) that provide opportunities to practice these skills. Furthermore, it is critical to tailor telehealth education/training to the specific medical contexts and patient populations in which providers are most likely to use telehealth