Authors
1 Asistant Professor, Health Services Management, Hospital Management Reaserch Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
2 Lecturer, Health Services Management, Health Promotion Reaserch Center, Zahedan University of Medical Sciences, Zahedan, Iran. (Corresponding Author) Email: m_khammar1985@yahoo.com
3 Associate Professor, Health Services Management, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
Abstract
Introduction: The rate of access to health care is known as the main index of community health.
Teleconsultation is defined as using comminuting equipments to connect physicians and patients.
This study aimed to survey the readiness of specialized hospitals to implement teleconsultation,
focusing on manpower readiness, as well as communicational equipments and procedures.
Methods: The present descriptive cross-sectional study was carried out in 2010. Research
population consisted of hospital management unit, information technology (IT) unit, matron,
supervisors, etc. The research sample included 106 top and middle managers of the studied
hospitals. Data was collected by a self-developed questionnaire that researcher. The validity and
reliability of the questionnaire was determined by the researcher. Data was analyzed by SPSS.
Results: Among the 8 studied hospitals, 4 cases scored more than average (29). Hasheminezhad
Hospital was in the best condition than the other hospitals in the study. In addition,
Hasheminezhad and Shahid Fahmide Hospitals scored higher than average on awareness of
managers and required standards.
Conclusion: Implementation of teleconsultation could facilitate community accessibility to
health services. It would also lead to a considerable reduction in health expenditures. Therefore,
hospitals are suggested to do the necessary interventions for establishing teleconsultation
network.
Keywords
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