This simulation report concerns a telehealth simulation done on a geriatric patient suffering from psychological disturbance secondary to a recent diagnosis with HIV/AIDS. My client is Mr. Sam.  Due to the remoteness of the client’s residence, I am not able to visit the client directly to his home at all the times. As a result, we have agreed with the client that I will be making visits through the advanced communication technology of video conferencing. In this report, I will discuss the teleconferencing meeting I had with Mr. Sam. In the report, I have explained how I addressed the client’s privacy needs, the interpersonal communication techniques I used, the main patient issues I addressed, and the content of the instructions that I gave. In addition, I have mentioned the follow-up plan for the patient, and the benefits and challenges I encountered during the telehealth simulation.

A client’s privacy during tele-nursing is as important as in a normal clinical setting (US Department of Health, 2014). Under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), healthcare providers have the responsibilityof protecting the client’s information, whether the information is obtained electronically of manually. In the simulation, I assured the client about his privacy, and made sure that my device was secured with a password. Also, I reminded the client about the importance of taking responsibility to protect his health information, and gave instructions on individual device security. Since Mr. Sam is my private patient, I made sure no other person was in my simulation room during the video conferencing. Apart from the assurance, I made sure I stored the recordings in Mr. Sam’s electronic file, and secured it with a password. My technical team work under instructions concerning patient’s information privacy. Since I knew Mr. Sam before, I ensured it was him in the video, and not somebody else.

In order to promote effective interpersonal communication during the simulation, I applied the technique of creating trust and a therapeutic relationship with Mr. Sam. I made friends with him, and started the simulation by creating an environment of mutual respect. In addition, I applied empathy and genuineness to gain his confidence (Videback, 2011

The assessment focused on Mr. Sam’s psychological health.  The content of the instructions wabout  the complications associated with the HIV/AIDS drugs and the side-effects, as well as, the consequences of non-adherence. I addressed religious issues, and sought to know if the client had any fears, which I addressed and allayed anxiety (Videback, 2011). In regard to patient follow-up, we agreed with the client that, we will be holding a meeting after every three days at exactly 9:00 am for 30 minutes. This will continue for two weeks, after which I will visit him at his home for further evaluation, re-assessment and counselling.

The method is beneficial in that it is cheap. It does not involve travelling, and it is instant. In addition, the patient was attended in the comfort of his home. Another benefit is that documentation of care happens as care is delivered, and the storage of the information is efficient. Further, the method is very good for monitoring and follow-up (Fairchild-Schlacht, Elfrink, &Dieckman, 2008). It has the challenge of lacking the physical, therapeutic touch. The provider may miss some information that one would obtain through direct observation. Lastly, a technical hitch interrupted the communication, although for only a minute, after which I fixed it.

References

Fairchild-Schlachta, L., Elfrink, V., &Dieckman, A. (2008). “Patient safety, telehealth and telenursing”. In Hughes, G. R. (Ed.). Patient safety and quality: an evidence-based book for nurses. Rockville, MD: Ahency for Health Care Research and Quality. Chapter 48, 135-174.

1. Department of Health. (2014). Health information privacy. Retrieved from http://www.hhs.gov/ocr/privacy/hipaa/understanding/index.html

Videback, S. L. (2011). Psychiatric-mental health nursing. Hoboken, NJ: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

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