Results and briefing - Navigating Telehealth: The Patients' Perspective
Throughout last year, we asked you what do you, as patients and carers, think about the big change to the availability of telehealth for many medical consultations.
Led by the COVID-19 Health Consumer Taskforce together with the COVID-19 Consumer Representative Hub, we collected individual patient stories during a virtual workshop and on this very site through stories, surveys and polls.
Outcome 1 - reports (download on right)
We are excited to launch our findings in two reports:
- Navigating Telehealth: The Patients' Perspective - providing a summary of the review and all key recommendations
- Background report - providing more detail on the telehealth landscape and how it changed during COVID-19, along with the experiences of patients navigating these telehealth changes, and what health consumers recommend as a result.
The reports explore how telehealth unblocks the path to accessing appropriate care – breaking down the barriers of not only geographical distance but also physical, emotional, time and cost restraints.
We examine how vital it is to provide patient choice. Telehealth does not suit everyone and for those that it does, a mix of consultation modes is important to ensure accessible, effective care that minimises burden and disruption.
We present a range of enablers identified by health consumers themselves, and we have framed the insights from the review into a set of actionable key recommendations.
Outcome 2 - briefing
We are organising a public briefing on Thursday, 6 May 2021 at 12pm about the report's findings. You can register to take part in the briefing HERE.
Outcome 3 - presentation
Shortly, we will also put up a presentation about the report's findings on this page for use by everyone. Stay tuned.
Outcome 4 - media release
You can download the media release on the right.
Where to from here?
We are now distributing the reports and their findings to health consumer organisations in NSW, media, health consumer organisations and anyone who will listen. We hope the key recommendations can help to shape permanent telehealth services of the future in NSW and Australia.
Although the reports are published, you can still tell us your telehealth story below and take our short survey, the quick poll is closed.
Have you had an experience with telehealth you'd like to share?
We are keen to hear what you have to say about telehealth consultations:
- About when it worked well, or didn't work so well for you.
- Or were you unable to access telehealth when you wanted to?
- Or you didn't want a telehealth consultation but had no other option available to you?
(We are referring to phone or video consultations between patients and GPs, nurses, outpatient clinics, allied health providers and psychological services. If you aren't from NSW that's OK, maybe tell us what state you are from?)
Following a check by our friendly moderation team your story will be published here. It will help us develop our response to the Federal Department of Health about the future of telehealth consultations.
Please note: if your story includes any serious complaints that you would like to see resolved, we highly recommend posting it on Care Opinion (www.careopinion.org.au) as the service will be alerted. Just mention 'telehealth' in your story and we will see it when we review the latest published stories on Care Opinion.
Who's Listening
-
Health Consumer Representative
Email Laila@bsmartmgt.com.au -
Phone + 61 (0) 2 9986 1082 Email info@hcnsw.org.au
Are you a consumer representative?
The COVID-19: Consumer Representative Hub is a closed group hosted here on Amplify. Our aim is to support health consumer representatives in NSW to contribute to information sharing, problem-solving and practical actions that support the response to COVID-19.
Find out more about the COVID-19: Consumer representative Hub here:
