Role of telehealth in seating clinics: a case study of learners' perspectives

Abstract

We conducted a qualitative case study of the introduction of telehealth in a seating clinic, which was an existing outreach service between two hospitals in Alberta, approximately 300 km apart. Interviews were conducted with the staff who were involved in planning and implementing the telehealth initiative. The study showed that, from the perspective of the staff (who were learners), implementation of telehealth in seating clinics differs from other less tactile telehealth applications in certain ways: (1) the importance of multidisciplinary teams in the procedures, (2) the importance of proper visualization and communication among the staff to convey the pressure changes and measurements to the technicians at the major centre to help them build or adjust the seating devices and (3) the reluctance of staff to trust others' judgements. Planning of service provision and telelearning for seating clinics requires the involvement of staff at all stages. Thus, the implementation of telehealth should be a stepwise process, allowing a highly interactive approach, without affecting the multidisciplinary nature of seating clinics.