A qualitative approach was used to explore the readiness of a rural community for the implementation of telehealth services. There were four domains of interest: patient, practitioner, public and organization. Sixteen semistructured telephone interviews (three to five in each domain) were carried out with key informants and recorded on audio-tape. Two community awareness sessions were held, which were followed by five audio-taped focus groups (with five to eight people in each) in the practitioner, patient and public domains. In addition, two in-depth interviews were conducted with community physicians. Analysis of the data suggested that there were four types of community readiness: core, engagement, structural and non-readiness. The level of readiness varied across domains. There were six main themes: core readiness; structural readiness; projection of benefits; assessment of risk; awareness and education; and intra-group and inter-group dynamics. The results of the study can be used to investigate the readiness of rural and remote communities for telehealth, which should improve the chance of successful implementation.
This paper examines telehealth readiness from an organizational perspective and explores the essence of telehealth readiness among four domains, namely, patients, practitioners, the public, and organizations in rural Canadian communities. Because readiness is a necessary requirement for the successful implementation of an innovation, it is important to identify and ensure core factors of readiness before costly investments are made. The findings presented here derive from a qualitative phenomenological research approach involving semistructured telephone interviews with four key informants (respondents). The data identified four categories of readiness in an organizational setting: core readiness, engagement, structural readiness, and nonreadiness. Understanding organizational readiness within rural and remote communities is an important step for the successful implementation of telehealth services into existing systems of health care.
Aims and objectives This research examines the experiences of pharmacists as they integrated and adapted to meet the drug‐related needs of family practice settings.
Setting: This research took place in physician‐led group family medicine practices in Ontario, Canada. Each practice was in the process of integrating an on‐site pharmacist.
Methods Qualitative design using monthly pharmacist narrative reports (over the first 4months of pharmacist integration) and N‐VIVO qualitative analysis software. Four independent researchers with varied professional backgrounds used descriptive thematic editing analysis to determine process and content themes. The analysis team created a draft of themes and received written feedback from each pharmacist.
Key findings Four key themes emerged describing how pharmacists experienced the first several months working in family practice: (1) feelings: emotional challenges and victories; (2) establishing and building relationships: positive and negative experiences with physicians and staff; (3) learning new skills to contribute effectively and efficiently to patient care; and (4) strategies for integration: including practical demonstration of potential value to physicians to facilitate integration process. In addition, they identified a number of supports and constraints for integration.
Conclusion The pharmacists' narratives demonstrate the challenges and rewards of the integration process. Adaptability and practical demonstration of potential utilization and benefit were crucial in physician acceptance of the pharmacist program. This description of the pharmacists' journey will be helpful for pharmacists, managers, policy‐makers, researchers and educators as more pharmacists enter this type of primary care practice.
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