Health workers perception on telemedicine in management of neuropsychiatric symptoms in long-term care facilities: Two years follow-up

Highlights • We conducted a large multicenter trial focusing on the perception of telemedicine over a two-year period in the real world. • Health professionals confirmed their positive perception of telemedicine after two years of use. • We pointed out the importance of involving staff members in a participatory approach to ensure generalized adherence to telemedicine as a service. • The results establish lines of action for a large-scale deployment of such solution.
The management of neuropsychiatric symptoms is a challenge in long-term care facilities. Our objective was to assess the perception of telemedicine, as a useful tool to connect staff to specialized units. In this multicenter prospective study, 90 patients from ten facilities benefited from 180 sessions over two years. The primary outcome was the perception of telemedicine evaluated through semi-structured interviews at baseline and two years later. Our results revealed positive perceptions of telemedicine, confirmed after two years of real-life experience with its use. Not only do staff members believe that telemedicine is not a downgraded version of medicine, but they also believe that it could improve the quality of care. They expressed a very positive sense of recognition of their professional qualifications and indicated their need to be involved in change processes to ensure successful implementation and better adherence to telemedicine as a service.