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Telehealth
Commonly used term to describe a rapidly growing aspect of healthcare that aims
to " improve quality, access, equity and affordability of healthcare worldwide"
(ATA)
- More inclusive concept of ICT, politically correct, modern discourse
Telemedicine
Modality of care that challenged traditional dependence of physical dependence
b/w contact and provider
- Multidimensional, means many different things to many different people, in
need of a taxonomy
Telepractice
(General)
A way to provide direct and indirect speech/language therapy services
- Relatively new to the field of SLP, but has been used by other providers for some
time (OT, PT counseling, medicine)
- Services are provided through use of high speed internet, web cameras and
videoconferencing system in real time
,ASHA's definition of telepractice
Application of telecommunication tech for delivery of services at a distance
- Approved in 2015
Benefits to telepractice (ASHA)
- Can provide needed services across the nation
- Free and appropriate public Ed
- Creates additional or more consistent direct and indirect service opportunities
- Enables real-time collaboration w/ team members
- Complements traditional, on-site service and energizes student learning
- Can be cost effective
- Reduces geo barriers and extends clinical expertise
Clinical benefits to telepractice (ASHA)
- Select research = students receiving tele- outperform control groups and
national benchmarks on: expressive/ receptive language; social pragmatics and
speech sound production/ artic
- Speech therapy via tele is emerging as standard of care, w/ equal or better than
traditional "table top" therapy
- Can be force multiplier for SLPS working in multiple schools
, - Therapist and client work in online programs in highly motivating digital learning
environment
- Therapy sessions can be recorded, edited, saved and later viewed online by
client, caregivers, family and/or teachers granted permission
- Client can go online multiple times to access therapy program for extra practice
- Telepractice enables professionals to: educate, communicate and collaborate
Limitations of telepractice (ASHA)
Space, budget, on-site support, broadband, security concerns, network firewalls,
licensure requirements, community awareness, physical manipulation, managing
behavioral issues, tech knowledge/ ability to trouble shoot, collaboration w/ on-
site staff, difficulties in team training, difficulty promoting carryover skills in
classroom, scheduling, overall acceptance
Telehealth platforms to support service delivery
Synchronous (direct and in real-time)
Asynchronous (indirect and can be offline)
Hybrid (both direct and indirect)
Synchronous
Direct delivery model
Conducted w/ interactive audio & video connection in real time