Telehealth Nursing Practice Essentials

Telehealth Nursing Practice Essentials provides information necessary for safe, competent practice of telehealth nursing. It includes a culmination of topics essential for nurses new to telehealth practice, experienced in telehealth and for those interested in expanding their knowledge base. Key information is presented including the nursing process, focus, roles, legal, communication, customer service, technology, clinical decision tools, documentation and clinical information for the nurse to have an-depth understanding of the telehealth nursing scope of practice. The concept for this book was developed from the Telehealth Nursing Practice Core Course (TNPCC) manual by the American Academy of Ambulatory Nursing (AAACN). When the TNPCC manual was written in 2001, it was not known that the TNPCC would have such sustainability over nearly of decade of telehealth nursing practice. Over the years, there have been considerable changes in telehealth practice. Roles have expanded and evolved from telephone triage. A myriad of telecommunication devices are used for the encounter: the nurse- patient interaction. Roles include telehealth triage, consultation, follow-up and monitoring. Although roles have evolved, the patient remains the center of focus. The patient expects the care and the nurse is the provider of care. No matter what the telehealth setting, nurses reading this book should be able to identify issues relative to their particular situation and apply the information in order to enhance practice. It is with this goal in mind, that on behalf of my AAACN telehealth nursing colleagues, we present the first edition of Telehealth Nursing Practice Essentials: an essential information source for telehealth nursing.