Telehealth is Here to Stay!

We know telehealth has changed healthcare, but did you realize it's transforming traing too. #telehealth Medical and nursing students adapt technology into practice? The utilization of telehealth in simulation holds great promise for the future. #medicalsimulation In my most recent assignment we performed a community health simulation to have students assess an elderly patient using Zoom to discern the diagnosis between depression, dementia and delirium. The main objective of the simulation was to help them differentiate. It is well known that these diagnoses can appear similar in the elderly. Helping students identify the differences is key as our aging population increases. The students called the provider, who was the faculty and communicated using SBAR format to describe the situation, findings and recommendations. The students learned and discussed the differences during the debriefing.

Zoom or Skype in simulation is a way to increase awareness and develop new thinking strategies about how to communicate with providers when necessary. Telehealth is becoming increasingly more common and students can gain an understanding of how it can be used in replacement of brick and mortar visits. The logistics of using Zoom in simulation is very easy because most everyone has a smart phone. Additional scenarios can be created for home visits with new mothers who are struggling with newborn care or new nurses who work in assisted living facilities who are contacting providers to differentiate sending a senior out verses begin able to care for them on site. The possibilities are infinite.

As defined by Dr. Gaba; “Simulation is a technique—not a technology—to replace or amplify real experiences with guided experiences that evoke or replicate substantial aspects of the real world in a fully interactive manner.”

At Innovative SimSolutions? we can help you create and implement simulation into your program no matter the size or budget with innovative strategies to help you achieve your objectives.

innovativesimsolutions.com

References

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1765792/

Lister, M., Vaughn, J., Brennan-Cook, J., Molloy, M., Kuszajewski, M., & Shaw, R. J. (2018). Telehealth and telenursing using simulation for pre-licensure USA students.?Nurse Education In Practice,?2959-63. doi:10.1016/j.nepr.2017.10.031