Date of Award
Fall 2022
Degree Type
Dissertation/Thesis
Degree Name
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
School
Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice
Committee Chair
Dr. Marti Jordan
Committee Chair School
Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice
Committee Member 2
Dr. Carolyn Coleman
Committee Member 2 School
Leadership and Advanced Nursing Practice
Abstract
A morbidity and mortality report made by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) on the impact of telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic throughout 2020 noted several instances in which telemedicine tools had contributed to improved patient outcomes, including: increasing the availability of care to patients otherwise left with little access to health care, decreasing unnecessary patient visits, and reduced disease exposure to patients and staff directly at risk (CDC, 2020).
As the utilization of telemedicine becomes more important and prevalent in U.S. health care systems, it is important to recognize factors that inhibit patient usage. Factors such as inadequate access to electronic tools, the internet, education on telemedicine program use, and personal preference in health care management can affect how patients participate in telemedicine. The purpose of this DNP project was to identify and analyze the different factors that affect telemedicine use among adult participants utilizing a questionnaire created by the researcher. The questionnaire was made available to two locations for convenience sampling: The University of Southern Mississippi (USM) Nursing College student email list via direct online hyperlink, and a specialty clinic in Hattiesburg, Mississippi via paper copies and QR code signage linked to the questionnaire online.
Improving health care systems such as patient telemedicine use can positively impact patient health outcomes through improved health care access. Providers, health care organizations, and other interested parties can improve patient participation through individualized promotion and education on the use and benefits of telemedicine by recognizing factors that impact telemedicine use. Providing a self-completed questionnaire for patients evaluating telemedicine perception, access, and use can provide adequate data to improve patient-centered approaches to telemedicine participation.
Copyright
Katherine Lewing, 2022
Recommended Citation
Lewing, Katherine, "Telemedicine Perception: An Identification and Evaluation of Factors Contributing To The Use of Telemedicine Services" (2022). Doctoral Projects. 196.
https://aquila.usm.edu/dnp_capstone/196