Outline for Recommendation Report

1. Introduction

The changing patient’s needs force healthcare providers to consider technologies that help streamline clinical practices. Telehealth is among the viable options available for organizations to enhance patient engagement, monitor conditions, and interact with patients and families using audio and visual technologies. Nurses have the opportunity to use the Internet, telephones, web cameras, and other tools to monitor parameters such as patient’s oxygen levels, heart rate, respiration, blood glucose (Gajarawala & Pelkowski, 2019). This outline highlights the value of telehealth and the criteria for determining relevance in nursing practice. However, questions emerge about cost implications to the organization, data privacy and security, and a firm’s ability to cope with multiple regulations and guidelines. The report provides insights into the different criteria to analyze risks and benefits against recommendations, the recommendation, and a summary of the facts associated with telehealth.

1. Analysis Criteria

   1. The cost of advancement may be high considering the resources required to implement telehealth in form of software and hardware components and training. Despite the cost implications, the process entails promoting a positive image supported by commitment to optimizing care outcomes (Gajarawala & Pelkowski, 2019). The wide range of opportunities enhance patient and family engagement by allowing nurses to interact with individuals in remote locations.
   2. The organization requires significant investment to strengthen data privacy, security, and confidentiality. Vulnerability of protected health information to breaches could affect efforts to initiate technological changes (Hwei & Octavius, 2021). However, the existence of other information systems within the organization and security features reinforce preparedness towards countering threats.
   3. Another criterion involves the need to complement telehealth with in-person care practices. In this sense, there are concerns about limited face-to-face sessions and risk of inadequate physical examination associated with telehealth. However, the opportunity to scale patient education makes telehealth ideal for initiating and maintaining desired interactions between healthcare professionals, patients, and families (Burroughs et al., 2021). The criteria reveal that telehealth is a viable option for the facility to streamline nursing practices and optimizing the quality and safety of patient care. As such, the organization should move on to design and implement telehealth to match changing patient demands.

• Recommendation

The solution is designing and implementing telehealth that matches patient demands and the firm’s strategic goals. Despite concerns over data privacy and security, cost, and the risk of declining in-person care, telehealth prepares the organization for the future, including rising demand for remote care to reduce the risk of readmissions, emergency care visits, and delayed diagnosis and treatment. Implementing the technology will create opportunities for the nursing team to offer care to patients regardless of the location, time, and staff size.

1. Conclusion

Telehealth provides opportunities for the organization to aligning nursing practices with the demand for patient-centered and outcome-based care. The focus on patient education, interdisciplinary collaboration, and reduced cost of care makes telehealth ideal for enabling the firm achieve long-term strategic goals. Nurses have an opportunity to build relationships with patients, families, and colleagues over the course of the entire disease process.

1. References

Burroughs, M., Urits, I., Viswanath, O., Simopoulos, T., & Hasoon, J. (2021). Benefits and shortcomings of utilizing telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08998280.2020.1792728