University of Winchester team praised for work in emerging field of ‘telehealth’

In the digital age in which remote consultations are becoming more common, webside manner is just as important as bedside manner for healthcare professionals.  

A team from the University of Winchester were praised for their work in the area of ‘telehealth’ at the ASPiH (Association for Simulated Practice in Healthcare) Conference held in Edinburgh recently.  

Winchester’s  ”Webside manner and beyond: Utilising simulation to transform telehealth skills in allied health profession students” was selected as one of the three best abstracts at the event out of 350 submitted ahead of the international conference.  

The authors were Dr Katherine Cook (Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy), Dr Caroline French (Research Assistant), Amanda Pike (Head of Department Allied Health Professions), Justine Clements (Business Development Manager) and Tai Frater (Senior Lecturer in Allied Health Professions).  

Dr Cook presented Winchester’s submission on stage at a session devoted to the best abstracts. She said: “It has been an amazing opportunity to be involved in dynamic team and project. It has had a really positive impact on an inter-professional group of healthcare students.”  

The telehealth skills package for Nursing and AHP (Allied Health Professions*) students at University of Winchester, was created in 2022 with the aid of funding from Health Education England (now NHS England) as part of an expansion of simulation training. The multi-professional, virtual learning telehealth programme is used flexibly across different AHP and Nursing student year groups.   

The UoW telehealth package utilises simulated telehealth consultations where students work in multidisciplinary groups to achieve tasks such as conducting a remote or virtual clinical assessment but with actors as patients.  

Dr Cook said the telehealth package using simulation had boosted Winchester students’ knowledge and confidence in a safe and supportive way.  

 “The positive shift in attitudes to telehealth and students’ webside manners are likely to benefit healthcare users as learners go out into practice. We undertaking further research into the impact of simulation within our healthcare courses,” she said.  

Rosie Courtney (Senior Workforce Specialist, Simulation and Patient Safety, South East, NHS England) attended the conference and said that she was delighted that their funding continues to have impact on advancing training in this emerging area of virtual healthcare education.  

The team was also awarded a Senate Academic Teaching Excellence award at a recent University of Winchester Education Day.  

Dr Cook also also gave a well-received presentation on the telehealth package to the recent NET Conference 2024:  organised by Networking and Innovation in Healthcare Education. 

*The 14 AHPs are art therapists, drama therapists, music therapists, podiatrists, dietitians, occupational therapists, operating department practitioners, orthoptists, osteopaths, paramedics, physiotherapists, prosthetists and orthotists, radiographers, speech and language therapists.