Perspectives on Telepractice

Coordinator's Column

Cohn, E. R. — 2013-04-26T09:00:21-07:00

To Move Telepractice Toward the Future, We Should Look to the Past

Brennan, D. — 2013-04-26T09:00:21-07:00

Recent advances in technology have made communication and information access faster, less expensive, and more accessible than ever. These technologies afford a tremendous opportunity to grow telepractice and redefine where, when, and how care is provided. Looking back at the history of telepractice yields important lessons and provides guidance for how we can move forward, most significantly, as it relates to the role of technology as an enabling infrastructure. To best promote and expand the future of telepractice, we should continue to innovate technology, advocate for changes in reimbursement and licensing, collect strong research data, and collaborate to share our successes and our failures.

Putting the "Tele-" in Telepractice

Fleming, A. M., Brown, K. J., Houston, K. T. — 2013-04-26T09:00:21-07:00

Telepractice is emerging as an effective service delivery model in speech-language pathology and audiology. Videoconferencing technology has continued to evolve and is now more widely available across a range of devices. These technologies support both synchronous and asynchronous service delivery models and may incorporate additional hardware and software. Practitioners who are establishing new telepractice programs, as well as those with more experience, must stay abreast of these technological changes. In this article, authors give an overview of ASHA's definition of telepractice and discuss synchronous versus asynchronous technology, hardware versus software, telepractice security concerns, and cloud-computing. Authors provide additional resources for these topics as well as for specific software programs used in support of telepractice.

Getting Started in Audiology Telepractice

Gladden, C. — 2013-04-26T09:00:21-07:00

Audiology telepractice has become a reliable and effective service delivery model that benefits patients and caregivers by reducing patient and clinician travel time and related costs, improving patient adherence to appointments, decreasing wait times for service, and enhancing geographic access to comprehensive hearing care, especially for patients living in rural areas (Dennis, Gladden, & Noe, 2012). The growing national network of experienced and expert telehealth practitioners, positive outcome data, and refinement of practice guidelines and standards have made "getting started in audiology telepractice" an important and achievable goal for audiologists. Developing an audiology telepractice is a highly systematic multidisciplinary process that requires a commitment to collaboration, creating effective communication networks, and ongoing coordination of team activities. A foundation of strong administrative and clinical leadership and "buy-in" are keys to success during all phases of audiology telepractice planning and implementation. A realistic assessment of patient service needs/trends, institutional goals and resources, staffing, space, and technical demands is required and necessitates the active engagement of a diverse collaborative core team. Ongoing advancements in teleaudiology suggest that, despite multiple challenges, emerging patient needs will continue to push this service delivery model forward.

Telepractice: New and Emerging Technologies That Promise Change

Williams, S. — 2013-04-26T09:00:21-07:00

The use of telecommunication technologies for providing clinical services in speech-language pathology via telepractice has been in place for decades (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, 2005c). However, the sophistication of the technology used to successfully implement telepractice models of clinical service delivery continues to evolve and improve over time. This article reviews new and emerging technologies that promise change for speech-language pathologists in the area of telepractice. Current research and development for both near and far emerging technologies will be discussed, including potential future clinical applications and links to online technology demonstrations.