Health professional's readiness and factors associated with telemedicine implementation and use in selected health facilities in Ghana

Nathan Kumasenu Mensah; Godwin Adzakpah; Jonathan Kissi; Richard Okyere Boadu; Obed Uwumbornyi Lasim; Martha Khainde Oyenike; Abigail Bart-Plange; Maxwell Ayindenaba Dalaba; Felix Sukums

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14501

Health professional's readiness and factors associated with telemedicine implementation and use in selected health facilities in Ghana

Heliyon. 2023 Mar;9(3):e14501. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e14501. Epub 2023 Mar 17.

Authors

Nathan Kumasenu Mensah¹, Godwin Adzakpah¹, Jonathan Kissi¹, Richard Okyere Boadu¹, Obed Uwumbornyi Lasim¹, Martha Khainde Oyenike¹, Abigail Bart-Plange¹, Maxwell Ayindenaba Dalaba², Felix Sukums³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Health Information Management, School of Allied Health Science, University of Cape Coast, Cape Coast, Ghana.
² Institute of Health Research, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ho, Ghana.
³ Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences, Box 65001, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

Abstract

Background: Telemedicine, which is the practice of medicine using technology to deliver health care remotely, has a low adoption rate in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). However, the advent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has forced healthcare systems in these settings to begin implementing telemedicine programs. It is unknown how prepared health professionals and the healthcare system are to adopt this technology. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the readiness of health professionals and explore factors associated with telemedicine implementation in Ghana.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in six health facilities between March and August 2021. Convenience sampling was used to select the six health facilities, and the participants were selected randomly for the study. Questionnaires were self-completed by participants. Data was exported into STATA 15.0 for analysis, and appropriate statistical methods were employed. All statistical tests were performed at a significance level of p < 0.05.

Results: Of the 613 health professionals involved in the study, about 579 (94.5%) were comfortable using computers, and the majority, 503 (82.1%) of them, had access to computers at the workplace. Health professionals agreed that the measures outlined by the health facilities supported their readiness to use telemedicine for healthcare services. Analysis revealed a statistically significant positive relationship between health facilities' core readiness and health professionals' readiness, with a correlation coefficient (r) of 0.5484 and a p-value<0.0001. Of the factors associated with health professionals' readiness towards telemedicine implementation, facility core readiness, engagement readiness, staff knowledge and attitude readiness showed a statistically significant relationship with health professionals' readiness.

Conclusion: The study revealed that health professionals are ready to adopt telemedicine. There was a statistically significant relationship between health facilities' core readiness, engagement readiness, staff knowledge and attitude readiness, and health professionals' readiness. The study identified factors facilitating telemedicine adoption.

Keywords: Ghana; Health professionals; Low- and middle- income countries (LMICs); Readiness; Telemedicine; eHealth implementation.