Things to Consider for Telehealth Services - Why it Matters

Technology has opened up many different opportunities for how we are able to age in place and go about our daily lives. One of the types of opportunities that has gained traction is the use of tele-health services for better outreach to individuals who may find physically attending a doctor's appointment difficult to do.

To begin with, older adults or individuals with adaptive needs may have more challenges attending a medical appointment than we realize. There are a lot of steps that go into preparing for a physical medical appointment and so going for a follow-up can be challenging, taxing and a big ordeal for many individuals. Tele-health services are a great way to address and overcome some of these challenges that come with a physical appointment. That being said, it is important to also acknowledge the challenges in attending a tele-health or virtual medical appointment.

Researchers Kalicki and associates (2021) discussed some barriers older adults have to using Tele-health services, and through understanding these barriers we can better prepare for them. In their study they mention how the majority of older adults who participated in a virtual appointment did so with the assistance of someone else. They found that the majority of individuals who could not participate were adults with more advanced forms of dementia, had difficulty with hearing and/or seeing, or simply didn’t have someone to help set up the appointment for them. There are some other barriers to consider such as if they have internet services or the technology that supports virtual services. In my personal experience, some individuals prefer the use of flip phones or only have a home phone. For people living in rural areas sometimes the internet strength may not be optimal for live video appointment as well.

It is good practice to consider what barriers we may face as care partners and what barriers our clients may face as clinicians and service providers. Accessibility goes beyond the physical environment.

Kalicki, A. V., Moody, K., Franzosa, E., Gliatto, P., & Ornstein, K. (2021). Barriers to telehealth access among homebound older adults. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 69(9), 2404–2411. https://doi.org/10.1111/jgs.17163