Reflecting on Themes From Telehealth Consultations Early in the Pandemic: An Opportunity to Learn From...

This study is aimed at documenting the reflections of New Zealand healthcare professionals on the use of synchronous telehealth consultations.

A qualitative narrative inquiry was conducted to explore the practice of telehealth in New Zealand. Purposive sampling was used to identify clinicians from multiple professions who used telehealth during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Fifteen semistructured interviews were conducted between October 2020 and May 2021 with clinicians from primary and secondary care, including multiple professional backgrounds. Interview transcripts were analysed thematically.

Six themes were identified: (1) equitable access: There were concerns regarding equitable access to telehealth; (2) relationships and connections: This included connection with the whānau/family and their culture, between professions and as part of the wider health system; (3) information gathering and sharing: This included the visibility of the process as well as visibility of information regarding the client/patient; (4) adapting to change: There was significant variation between clinicians in transitioning to using telehealth; (5) professional boundaries: This included the prescribed boundaries such as the physical location of patients/clients, as well as unanticipated changes to personal, professional and organisational boundaries; (6) IT logistics: This included the potential technological drivers (enablers and disablers) within the process of incorporating telehealth.

Telehealth was critical in healthcare provision during the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued to be used within healthcare delivery postpandemic. The themes identified provided insight into the importance of considering the provision of telehealth as a complex package and identifying contextual challenges as well as the enablers and potential benefits of using this modality.