A qualitative study of the careers and professional practices of graduates from an e-health postgraduate programme

Abstract

We studied the careers and professional practices of graduates from an e-health postgraduate programme at the University of Queensland (UQ). The information was collected using an online questionnaire distributed to those who graduated from 2005 to 2010. A total of 35 surveys were completed, a response rate of 89%. The majority of respondents (n = 20, 57%) were male, and most of them (n = 27, 77%) were aged 30-49 years. Most of the respondents (n = 19, 54%) had graduated from the Graduate Certificate in E-healthcare programme; 12 had graduated from the Master of E-healthcare and 4 had graduated from the Graduate Diploma programme. The majority of respondents (n = 29, 83%) perceived that e-health study at UQ helped in their career development. The current occupation of the majority of respondents (n = 24, 69%) was related to health or medicine, and most (n = 27, 77%) had worked in an e-health related job since graduating. Overall, the level of satisfaction regarding the learning experience doing e-health study at UQ was high.

Education and training to support the use of clinical telehealth: A review of the literature

“…Out of nine papers, eight studies aimed to evaluate some aspect of telehealth E&T. Seven studies set out to evaluate participants' satisfaction and one study aimed to investigate the effect of a telehealth E&T program on students' professional careers. 18 Another study examined the feasibility of a short online course in telehealth for mental health professionals. 20 The study published by Ishibashi et al in 2011 24 aimed to describe the delivery of an e-Health education program to a group of participants from the Pacific Islands.…”

“…Four studies used cross-sectional samples 17,19,20,23 while the method of sample selection in other studies was unclear. According to the quality score, two studies were rated as seven, 18,20 two as six, 17,19 two as five 23,25 and one as four. 22 The quality rating for one study was -1 24 (Table 4).…”

“…In addition to theory and didactic learning, offerings included the development of hands-on practical skills and exposure to practical telehealth activities. One CPD course and one university undergraduate course incorporated a practical session within their E&T. 18,24 How is education provided?…”

“…Because using telehealth implies a change in practice, it should be supported by appropriate education for current and future practitioners. The literature suggests that education and training (E&T) in telehealth is needed and valued, [15][16][17][18] although the area has not been formally reviewed. Therefore, the key objective of this study is to review the literature published in peer review literature relating to the provision of E&T in telehealth for current and future practitioners.…”

The perspectives of South African academics within the disciplines of health sciences regarding telehealth and its potential inclusion in student training

“…[2][3][4][5][6] One of the suggested strategies to promote telehealth at a national level within developing countries is to introduce telehealth into the education and training programmes of healthcare professionals, both undergraduate and postgraduate, so that they are aware of, and can use, telehealth methods to provide healthcare to their patients. [7] The benefits associated with telehealth provide impetus for student and professional training across the healthcare disciplines. As students receive their training from academics at tertiary institutions, trained faculty with relevant content knowledge [8,9] and research experience in the field [10] should be available to disseminate this information and to demonstrate how telehealth can be used to provide and improve patient care.…”