Medical Students Viewpoints towards Development of Telemedicine Methods at Army University of Medical Sciences

Document Type : original research

Authors

1 Ph.D. in Health Information Management, Health Information Technology Department, AJA University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

2 Ph.D. in Pediatric Nursing, Pediatric Nursing Department, Faculty of Nursing, Aja University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

3 Ph.D. in Epidemiology, Department of Social Medicine, AJA University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

4 B.Sc. in Health Information Technology, Health Information Technology Department, Student research committee, AJA University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

5 M.Sc. in Health Information Technology, Health Information Technology Department, AJA University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.

Abstract

Aim: The study aimed to investigate the viewpoints of medical students towards the development of telemedicine methods at the Army of the Islamic Republic of Iran (AJA) University of Medical Sciences.
Method: This cross-sectional, descriptive-analytical study, which lasted 4 months, was performed on 117 medical students of AJA University of Medical Sciences in 2021. In doing so, a Stratified sampling method and researcher-made questionnaire were used to collect data. Thus, the inclusion criterion was being a medicine student and the exclusion criterion was the incomplete completion of the questionnaire.
Results: Students showed the most positive view (90.6%) regarding organizational factors to having a codified program in telemedicine development, and the most positive view towards high-speed Internet access (92.3%) concerning technology factors.  In addition, as far as the stakeholders were concerned, they had the most positive view (70.1%) on community support for telemedicine development. As for information literacy, 88.9% emphasized computer and Internet skills. Also, 83.8% had the most positive view on raising awareness for telemedicine development regarding environmental factors.
Conclusion: To sum up, the students had the most positive attitudes towards comprehensive telemedicine development plan, high-speed Internet access, and community support for telemedicine development, computer skills, Internet, and awareness. Hence, it is recommended to enhance these factors to help the development and implementation of telemedicine in medical education.

Keywords


  1. Faisal P, Kisman Z. Information and communication technology utilization effectiveness in distance education systems. International journal of engineering business management. 2020;12:1-9.
  2. Persaud YK, Portnoy JM. Ten rules for implementation of a telemedicine program to care for patients with asthma. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice. 2021;9(1):13-21.
  3. Jamil F, Ahmad S, Iqbal N, Kim D-H. Towards a remote monitoring of patient vital signs based on IoT-based blockchain integrity management platforms in smart hospitals. Sensors. 2020;20(8):1-26.
  4. Borscheva NL, Fedorova YV, Mityaeva NV, Gerchikova EZ, Fedorov EA. The Use of Telemedicine Services to Improve the Quality of Medical Care in Russia. Quality-Access to Success. 2021;22(181):124-8.
  5. Chellaiyan VG, Nirupama A, Taneja N. Telemedicine in India: Where do we stand? Journal of family medicine and primary care. 2019;8(6):1872–6.
  6. Bhalla A, Bhalla R, Ganta S. Working remotely: a perspective on telemedicine in the delivery of obstetrics and gynecology health care. The Obstetrician & Gynaecologist. 2021;4(1):1-6.
  7. Tian S, Yang W, Le Grange JM, Wang P, Huang W, Ye Z. Smart healthcare: making medical care more intelligent. Global Health Journal. 2019;3(3):62-5.
  8. Jang SM, Hong Y-J, Lee K, Kim S, Chiến BV, Kim J. Assessment of user needs for telemedicine robots in a developing nation hospital setting. Telemedicine and e-Health. 2020;27(6):670-8.
  9. Alipour J, Hayavi-Haghighi MH. Opportunities and Challenges of Telehealth in Disease Management during COVID-19 Pandemic: A Scoping Review. Applied Clinical Informatics. 2021;12(04):864-76.
  10. Maleki M, Mousavi SM, Khosravizadeh O, Heidari M, Raadabadi M, Jahanpour M. Factors affecting the use of telemedicine and telesurgery in cancer care (TTCC) among specialist physicians. Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention: APJCP. 2018;19(11): 3123–9.
  11. Kong SS, Azarfar A, Ashour A, Atkins C, Bhanusali N. Awareness and attitudes towards telemedicine among medical students in the United States. Cureus. 2020;12(11).
  12. Ghorbanzadeh K, Fallahi-Khoshknab M, Seyed Bagher Maddah S, Izadi Darghahlo M. Telehealth and telenursing knowledge and attitude among students of nursing in Ardebil University of Medical Sciences. Iran Journal of Nursing. 2017;30(107):42-52.
  13. Sotelo J. Innovations in the field of medicine in the era of informatics. Gaceta médica de México. 2020;156(4):261-2.
  14. Kadhim K. An Overview of Patient's Health Status Monitoring System Based on Internet of Things (IoT). Wireless Personal Communications. 2020;114(3):1-10.
  15. Taheri M, Heydarzadeh A, Heydari H, Mohtasham Amiri Z, editors. Physicians' views on the development of methods of the remote. 1th Congress use of information technology in health, Mazandaran, Iran; 2011.
  16. Knop M, Mueller M, Niehaves B. Investigating the Use of Telemedicine for Digitally Mediated Delegation in Team-Based Primary Care: Mixed Methods Study. Journal of Medical Internet Research. 2021;23(8):e28151.
  17. Al-Samarraie H, Ghazal S, Alzahrani AI, Moody L. Telemedicine in middle eastern countries: progress, barriers, and policy recommendations. International journal of medical informatics. 2020;141:1-15.
  18. rezaei m, Shobeiri SM. The relationship between the degree of using ICT (with an emphasis on the Internet) with the environmental literacy of students. Journal of human and the environment. 2015;21:1-18.
  19. Rezaei P, Maserrat E, Torab-Miandoab A. Specialist physicians’ perspectives about telemedicine and barriers to using it in Tabriz teaching hospitals. ISMJ. 2018;20(6):562-72.
  20. Torani S, Khammarnia M, Delgoshaei B. The ability of specialized hospitals of Iran university of medical sciences in establishing remote medical advice. Director General. 2012;8(6):785-94.
  21. HayaviHaghighi M, Alipour J, Mastaneh Z, Mouseli L. Feasibility study of telemedicine implementation in Hormozgan university of medical sciences. Hormozgan Medical Journal. 2011;15(2):128-37.