WHO Boosts Telemedicine Integration with New Support Tool

A new tool has been released by the World Health Organization (WHO, Europe Region) to assist healthcare systems globally in integrating telemedicine services. Researchers at the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) created the technology, known as the Support tool to strengthen telemedicine, as part of their work as a WHO Collaborating Center in eHealth between 2018 and 2024.

The UOC’s Faculty of Health Sciences is well-known throughout the world for its work in telemedicine and eHealth, research and solution creation, and professional training—areas in which it has sixteen years of expertise.

In the European Region, a recent WHO report shows that 78% of member nations have telemedicine included in their health policies. However, the use of this kind of healthcare is not uniform, and one of the primary obstacles is the absence of implementation instructions.

“The tool is ideal for countries seeking to integrate telemedicine into their digital health strategy in order to ensure equitable access to health services,” said Francesc Saigí, a researcher with the Epi4health group and a member of the UOC’s Faculty of Health Sciences. Additionally, it benefits healthcare networks by facilitating the coordination of services across various levels, so improving their efficiency and continuity.”

This tool serves as a manual to help healthcare systems all around the world with the planning, creation, application, and evaluation of telemedicine services. With the help of this resource, health sector leaders and decision-makers, along with other interested parties, will be able to determine the best course of action for implementing telemedicine services in their particular situation, as well as the adjustments, infrastructure, and resources required. They will also be able to monitor and evaluate the services once they have been put into place. The adaptability of the resource also makes it ideal for developing telemedicine in specific centres.

“The tool is ideal for countries seeking to integrate telemedicine into their digital health strategy.”- Francesc Saigí, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Oberta de Catalunya

A standard manual for many healthcare settings
The tool can be used in and adapted to a wide variety of scenarios, in both European countries and other parts of the world, despite having been developed within the scope of the WHO Europe Region. One of its advantages is that it offers a common framework that can be tailored to various social and economic situations, even when healthcare systems differ greatly in terms of technology infrastructure, regulatory frameworks, and resource availability. It also encourages professional participation and cooperation between the various stakeholders in the healthcare system.

The tool covers the following five areas: assessing the health ecosystem to see if it is prepared for telemedicine implementation; designing an integrated strategy within the healthcare system; creating the organizational change required for the new digital environment; developing the service and overseeing its implementation, monitoring, and optimization.

Its intuitive layout facilitates finding information and resources fast, and it provides detailed guidelines for successfully implementing telemedicine services. “As it’s based on evidence and global good practices, users can be confident of its effectiveness,” said Saigí.

Opposition to organizational change is a major obstacle to leveraging this resource and implementing telemedicine services generally. The investigator stated that “The adoption of new processes and technologies may encounter opposition from healthcare professionals, which is why it’s important to involve them from the beginning, from the design and implementation phase, which is what the tool promotes.”

Other obstacles include a lack of funding, the difficulty of integrating telemedicine services into current health systems, and a lack of expertise in telemedicine, which can limit its successful application. In order to guarantee that the telemedicine service conforms with the law, consideration must also be given to the various ethical norms and regulations that apply depending on the situation.

Future prospects and the first countries to use the resource
This instrument is being utilized in several nations since the World Health Organization, the tool’s owner, published the documentation. Georgia will soon implement it in its healthcare systems, as does Bosnia and Herzegovina. Although Armenia, Moldova, and Romania are among the interested countries, the execution of the program is being held up due to their desire to apply it on a national level.

Following up on the success of the first guide, the Francesc Saigí team at the UOC is currently working on a second tool that would assess the telemedicine service’s outcomes from both a clinical and financial standpoint.

The Framework for the Implementation of a Telemedicine Service and the analysis eHealth in the Region of the Americas: breaking down the hurdles to implementation are two other reference materials that the UOC published for the WHO prior to this project. “This track record and accumulated experience makes the UOC a trusted partner for the WHO in the design and implementation of telemedicine services on a global scale,” added Saigí.

Source Link: Universitat Oberta de Catalunya