8 Telehealth

Question 1

State some of the requirements for a remote dispensing location.

Answer 1

• must be operated by an accredited pharmacy, have a pharmacist available at all times supervising (even if they are not physically present)
• can be run by a pharmacy tech, or an automated pharmacy system
• OCP has to approve all the technology used for transmission of the prescription and ensuring that the prescription is authentic.
• can only sell drugs in schedules I, II, III (no controlled substances, targeted substances, or narcotics)

Question 2

What are some of the pros and cons of telepharmacy?

Answer 2

pros:

• increased access to pharmacist services in rural areas
• convenient
• saves time and costs

cons:

• pharmacists are less accessible
• not 24/7
• can promote the use of illegally operated online pharmacies

Question 3

State some of the OCP guidelines on Internet (online) pharmacies?

Answer 3

• must comply with the standards of practice
• must have a designated manager that is responsible for the operation (pharmacist)
• can only dispense drugs in schedules 1-3, no controlled substances, narcotics or targeted substances
• pharmacy needs to be a physical pharmacy, which can then expand onto the internet (accreditation certificate can only be given to physical pharmacies).
• internet operation must be available for onsite inspection by OCP, just like every other pharmacy practice.

Question 4

What is point of care testing? (POCT)

Answer 4

medical diagnostic testing, typically performed by non-lab personnel, completed outside of the clinical lab setting. Examples include blood glucose, INR, CBC etc.

Question 5

POCT - Are blood sugar monitoring apps effective in managing diabetes?

Answer 5

Yes and no. Apps will take and keep track of blood sugar levels, but give no indication as to what to do in order to regulate them. Works best when in combination with a comprehensive diabetes program to actually manage the condition. Apps can lower hb a1c by about 0.4%-0.8% in combination with a comprehensive diabetes program, but they are not likely to have much of an effect on the condition of the patient if they are just being used on their own.

Question 6

What are some of the roles of the pharmacist when it comes to POCT?

Answer 6

• INR testing
• diabetes management (hb a1c testing)
• covid screening
• HIV screening
• chlamydia screening (australia)

Question 7

What is the difference between a medical device and an app?

Answer 7

Apps are not regulated so you don’t quite know how reliable they are, medical devices are regulated. Medical devices are regulated by the Therapeutic Products Directorate for safety, effectiveness and quality.

Question 8

What is apo-mediation?

Answer 8

Guiding patients to the information that they have access to, but not explicitly deciding which information they should be looking at. Healthcare professionals should “Stand by” and not “stand between” consumers and health information.

Question 9

What are the 6 key factors that affect the rate of adoption?

Answer 9

1. is it better, does it offer an advantage?
2. does it fit their needs/ values?
3. is it easy?
4. can you try it? i.e. trial basis
5. can you see the benefit? the results should be observable.
6. is it adaptable? innovation should be able to adapt, be customizable to an extent.

B, N, E, T, O, A
- better, needs, easy, trial, observable, adaptable

Question 10

What is the Lily model?

Answer 10

Outlines 6 core skills for eHealth literacy (the ability to use the information that you find from electronic sources and apply it to solve whatever problem). The 6 core skills are:

1. literacy/numeracy (traditional) - can they read and write?
2. computer literacy - can they use a computer properly?
3. media literacy - can they look at media and be critical of what information they should apply?
4. science literacy - can they understand the science? building up knowledge with science
5. information literacy - how can you access that information ?
6. health literacy- getting that health information and helping yourself and your colleagues

Question 11

What are they types of innovation adaptors?

Answer 11

• innovators
• early adopters
• early majority
• late majority
• laggards

Question 12

What is the Technology acceptance model?

Answer 12

It is a useful way to look at new technology which states that: technology must be useful and easy to use, a positive attitude towards technology helps adaptation.