Upgrading rural Japanese nurses' respiratory rehabilitation skills through videoconferencing

A systematic review of the use of telehealth in Asian countries

We conducted a systematic review of the literature on telehealth in Asia. The Medline database was searched, together with three specialist journals, for peer-reviewed articles published in the ten years to June 2007 which were related to any telehealth application involving one or more Asian country. Out of the 1504 abstracts retrieved, 109 articles were selected by two independent reviewers for the final review. The number of published articles on telehealth in Asia increased during the review period. The largest number of studies were conducted in Japan (37%). Most telehealth applications were based on the store-and-forward modality (43%), with 35% using videoconferencing and 15% using a hybrid approach. Most of the studies were descriptive (75%) and only eight included a control group against which telehealth was compared. The most common means of telecommunication was ISDN lines, which were employed in 32% of the studies. Some 40% of the studies mentioned improved quality of health care; about 20% mentioned improved access to health care. Although most studies mentioned cost, only 13 of them assessed resource utilization and cost. The overall findings gave a generally optimistic picture of telehealth in Asia. However, there is a lack of good quality studies.

International rural health needs and services research: a nursing and midwifery response

As the importance of evidence-based practice in global health care increases, the need for constant, accurate feedback from those in practice is critical, yet the requirement to rapidly obtain and disseminate data on a global basis is a challenge for all health professionals. The Internet allows for global participation in data collection that dramatically streamlines the traditional survey process. This new paradigm applies to surveys that are short, issue focused, and time sensitive. The Global Network of World Health Organization (WHO) Collaborating Centres for Nursing and Midwifery Development used a sample of international nurses in 70 countries to identify the worldwide rural health issues of WHO priority health needs, treatment modalities, health care interventions, and providers, as well as the current state of rural health research on a global level. This article presents the results of the survey regarding rural health needs and nursing and midwifery's response to them internationally, demonstrates Internet data collection, and shows how this research paradigm can help establish an evidence base for nursing practice.

The effectiveness of palliative care education delivered by videoconferencing compared with face-to-face delivery

As part of a four-year study into the use of videoconferencing in palliative care, the delivery of workshops on palliative care to community nurses was evaluated by the Open University. Twenty nurses were randomly allocated to alternating videoconferencing and face-to-face modes of presentation. The quantitative study measured the amount of learning that occurred in each workshop with pre-tests and post-tests, and the mode of presentation. Forty-nine workshop attendances were analysed. The qualitative study used observation and analysis of videorecordings to assess the activity and attention spans in interactive communication during workshops, while a combination of interviews and questionnaires was used to assess the participants' level of satisfaction with presentation. The results showed that the nurses' level of satisfaction with the instructional presentation was high in both modes of presentation. Despite difficulties at the start of the project in the videoconferencing presentation, there was little difference between the modes of presentation in achievement scores or the gain in achievement scores. Although the learners preferred face-to-face workshops, they learnt as much from a videoconferenced workshop. Videoconferencing was less suitable for psychological or emotional discussions, but this may have been due to the time constraints on the workshops. Some features of videoconferencing suggest it could be used effectively in helping learners discuss sensitive issues. The Current Learning in Palliative Care (CLiP) worksheets were found to be an effective means of delivering learning.