Topic: Impacts of Telemedicine in Rural Areas
Question
Please write a description of an idea you have about a potential research topic. To do this you will need to create an overáll research question, and consider some of the issues discussed throughout this module. You are not locked into using this idea for your semester project. This is only an exercise in developing a possible idea. Although it may lead to your research topic, you may change your idea at any time. For all of your module assignments (modules 1-6) there is a minimum page length requirement of AT LEAST 4 full pages of text, not including any... Show more
Please write a description of an idea you have about a potential
research topic. To do this you will need to create an overáll research
question, and consider some of the issues discussed throughout this
module. You are not locked into using this idea for your semester
project. This is only an exercise in developing a possible idea.
Although it may lead to your research topic, you may change your
idea at any time.
For all of your module assignments (modules 1-6) there is a
minimum page length requirement of AT LEAST 4 full pages of text,
not including any title page or reference page. Details are very
important in research and the more you put into your papers the
better your final semester paper will be.
Using your topic of research, describe how you could design your
study using the experimental or quasi-experimental method. What
would be the independent and dependent variables? What would be
your procedure? How could you recreate your study using a
correlational method? What would be your variables? Are there any Servic...
other research designs from this module that may be more useful
than these?
Answer
Introduction Telemedicine's effect on patient outcomes in underserved areas is a vital topic that can be studied as part of health services research. Healthcare provided by electronic means, such as video conferencing and remote monitoring, is known as telemedicine. Because of the restricted availability of healthcare services in rural locations, this technology has the potential to enhance patient outcomes significantly. Telemedicine can dramatically enhance patient outcomes in rural locations by expanding access to experts, remote monitoring, preventative care, and mental health services (Sekhon et al., 2021). However, a substantial investment in hardware, software, and healthcare workers' education is necessary for... Show more
Introduction
Telemedicine's effect on patient outcomes in underserved areas is a vital topic that can be studied as part of health services research. Healthcare provided by electronic means, such as video conferencing and remote monitoring, is known as telemedicine. Because of the restricted availability of healthcare services in rural locations, this technology has the potential to enhance patient outcomes significantly. Telemedicine can dramatically enhance patient outcomes in rural locations by expanding access to experts, remote monitoring, preventative care, and mental health services (Sekhon et al., 2021). However, a substantial investment in hardware, software, and healthcare workers' education is necessary for a successful telemedicine program. Furthermore, in order for telemedicine to realize its full potential in enhancing patient outcomes in rural regions, it is necessary to solve concerns such as privacy and security of patient data and funding challenges.
Research Question
A potential overarching research topic is whether or not telemedicine improves patient outcomes in remote locations compared to in-person care.
Research Design
Experimental Method
With the experimental method, a group of rural patients with a given ailment or collection of conditions, for instance, diabetes or hypertension, might be randomly allocated to either a telemedicine group or a regular in-person care group. Patients' outcomes, as measured by clinical indicators like their blood pressure, blood sugar levels, or HbA1c, which is a measure of blood sugar control over time for diabetes patients, or improvement in hypertension, would serve as the dependent variable in this study. Moreover, the mode of care is telemedicine versus in-person will serve as the independent variable.
Patients from rural clinics and primary care offices might be recruited for the study, after which they would be provided with information about it and asked to participate if they want to do so. Care for patients in the telemedicine group would be delivered through video conversations with a healthcare practitioner. In contrast, care for patients in the normal in-person care group would be offered through visits in-person with their primary care physicians (Slavin-Stewart et al., 2020). In this hypothetical situation, information on patients' final outcomes would be collected regularly, once every three months for a whole calendar year.
Quasi-Experimental Method
Patients in the telemedicine and traditional care groups could be selected from the same population based on location. However, the study could also be designed using a Quasi-experimental approach, in which the telemedicine intervention would be introduced in some rural clinics and primary care offices but not others (Ibrahim et al., 2022). By contrast, a quasi-experimental design allows researchers to examine a therapy or intervention without having total control over the subject assignment to treatment and control groups.
Studying telemedicine is an example of an area where the random assignment of individuals to treatment groups would be impractical or unethical. Thus researchers utilize this approach instead. For example, a quasi-experimental design might be used to compare the outcomes of a group of people who received telemedicine interventions to a control group who got either standard care or no intervention in telemedicine research (Sekhon et al., 2021). In most ways, the two groups would be comparable but not identical. This can assist in controlling for any confounding variables and demonstrate a causal connection between the telemedicine intervention and the result being monitored.
Dependent and Independent Variables
Data might be obtained on a sample of rural patients receiving telemedicine treatment and rural patients receiving conventional in-person care to replicate this study using a correlational approach. Patients' outcomes would be monitored using the same clinical indicators as in the experimental trial, and the modality of treatment provided (telemedicine or in-person) would serve as the independent variable (Ibrahim et al., 2022). Analyses would be performed to see whether there is a connection between treatment modality and patient outcomes.
Research Procedure
The results of this study's participants with diabetes or hypertension will be tracked over time, and the treatment method used will be either telemedicine or in-person therapy. Telemedicine's remote monitoring capabilities have implications for hypertension. The patient's vitals, including their blood pressure, weight, and other pertinent health metrics, are regularly collected and transmitted to a healthcare professional via equipment like blood pressure cuffs, scales, and wearable monitoring devices. As a result, the doctor may monitor the patient's BP and make any necessary modifications to the treatment plan (Sekhon et al., 2021). If a patient has hypertension, for instance, they may use a home blood pressure cuff to monitor their blood pressure on a regular basis and then send the results to their doctor via a secure website or app. Once the information is analyzed, the doctor can make necessary changes to the patient's treatment plan.
Telemedicine is also helpful for conducting doctor-patient consultations when face-to-face meetings are impossible. This can be of particular assistance to patients who do not have simple access to medical care facilities, such as those who live in distant areas or have mobility issues. In addition, patients and physicians are able to have face-to-face conversations through the use of video conferencing in order to discuss a patient's medical history, symptoms, and treatment options (Nittari et al., 2020). For example, patients over the age of 65 who have hypertension can gain something from having a video chat with their primary care physician to go over their medicines, discuss their diet and lifestyle, and analyze how these factors affect their health.
Correlations Method
Patient education and encouragement are additional ways hypertension might benefit from telemedicine. Many hypertensive individuals may not have a firm grasp on their disease or how to treat it best. The use of telemedicine allows for the distribution of hypertension-related instructional materials, such as movies, pamphlets, and interactive software, to patients (Slavin-Stewart et al., 2020). Patients may benefit from knowing more about hypertension, its causes, and treatment options after reading this. For example, utilizing telemedicine, a doctor might show a patient a video about hypertension that outlines the disease's symptoms, causes, and treatment options.
Other Research Designs
An alternative research strategy that might provide light on the influence of telemedicine on patient outcomes in rural regions is a mixed-methods approach, which would include gathering both quantitative data, such as patient outcomes, and qualitative data, which include patients' impressions of telemedicine (Nittari et al., 2020). The present status of research on telemedicine and patient outcomes in rural regions could be summarized through a systematic review or meta-analysis of the literature on the issue.
Conclusion
In conclusion, telemedicine is a powerful tool that has the potential to assist in the resolution of a variety of problems linked to the accessibility of healthcare in rural regions. The provision of increased access to specialists, remote monitoring, preventative care, and mental health services are all examples of ways in which telemedicine has the potential to improve the health of rural areas. However, it is necessary to address the challenges of implementing telemedicine programs because of the potential advantages that might accrue to communities that are now underserved.
Reference
Ibrahim, I. O., Bangura, A., O'Hara, N. N., Pollak, A. N., Slobogean, G. P., O'Toole, R. V., & Langhammer, C. G. (2022). Telemedicine and Socioeconomics in Orthopaedic Trauma Patients: A Quasi-Experimental Study During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons, 30(18), 910-916. https://doi.org/10.5435/JAAOS-D-21-01143
Nittari, G., Khuman, R., Baldoni, S., Pallotta, G., Battineni, G., Sirignano, A., ... & Ricci, G. (2020). Telemedicine practice: review of the current ethical and legal challenges. Telemedicine and e-Health, 26(12), 1427-1437. https://doi.org/10.1089/tmj.2019.0158
Sekhon, H., Sekhon, K., Launay, C., Afililo, M., Innocente, N., Vahia, I., ... & Beauchet, O. (2021). Telemedicine and the rural dementia population: A systematic review. Maturitas, 143, 105-114. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.maturitas.2020.09.001
Slavin-Stewart, C., Phillips, A., & Horton, R. (2020). A feasibility study of home-based palliative care telemedicine in rural Nova Scotia. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 23(4), 548-551. https://doi.org/10.1089/jpm.2019.0173
