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Toward successful future use of telehealth in occupational therapy practice: What the COVID-19 rapid shift revealed

Authors :
Cynthia R, Abbott-Gaffney
Liat, Gafni-Lachter
Jana, Cason
Katherine, Sheaffer
Rachael, Harasink
Kelsey, Donehower
Karen, Jacobs
Source :
Work. 71:385-394
Publication Year :
2022
Publisher :
IOS Press, 2022.

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, occupational therapy (OT) services delivered through telehealth demonstrated comparative effectiveness to in-person services. At the onset of the pandemic, occupational therapy practitioners (OTPs) needed to continue delivering care to clients without being in-person. Many OT practitioners pivoted rapidly to telehealth, in many instances, with very little training. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to describe the use of telehealth in occupational therapy during the early stages of the pandemic, and to explore how participants traversed the barriers. The perceived benefits and barriers to success with rapid telehealth adoption as experienced by OTPs, along with the specific strategies used to promote favorable outcomes may inform ongoing successful telehealth use in occupational therapy. METHOD: This study used a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design. Data was collected from September to December 2020 with an electronic survey. RESULTS: A total of 193 OTPs completed the survey, representing the delivery of OT services in 13 countries. Three main barriers to the use of telehealth were availability of materials, mastery of technology, and collaboration with caregivers/e-helpers. These barriers were negatively and significantly correlated with the participants’ confidence level in the use of telehealth. Participants overcame barriers by independently obtaining telehealth training, including training within one’s organization, support from social media, self-directed learning, and paid online telehealth webinars. CONCLUSION: Employers and educators can remove barriers to telehealth use by OTPs by providing a variety of learning opportunities and supports to enhance practitioners’ confidence, thus increasing the likelihood of continued use of telehealth as a powerful and gap-bridging delivery model in occupational therapy.

Details

ISSN :
18759270 and 10519815
Volume :
71
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
Work
Accession number :
edsair.doi.dedup.....b3bf641bc5c12f1615382f29440993dc
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3233/wor-210789