Telelearning in health: A Canadian perspective

Objective: This project identified telelearning projects associated with th e 13 established Canadian telehealth centers in order to describe the natur e of their activities, outline enablers and barriers to these activities, a nd present key action plans to move the Canadian agenda on telelearning in health forward. Materials and Methods: Data were collected by a one-page questionnaire sent to the Canadian telehealth centers. Recipients were asked to identify curr ent partners in such activities and to indicate if such partners should com plete a separate questionnaire. Forty-nine questionnaires were distributed. Reported enablers, barriers, and action plans were placed in categories an d analyzed. Data from 37 questionnaires, referencing 101 projects, formed t he basis of the analysis. Results: More than half of the telelearning programs were developed for hea lth providers, approximately one third for undergraduate or graduate studen ts, and a small percentage for patients or the private sector. The most fre quently used communication mode was two-way audio/video conferencing. Enabl ing conditions were grouped into four categories: Canada as a country, timi ng, infrastructure, and collaboration and support. Five categories of barri ers were cited: lack of sustainable funding, insufficient infrastructure an d resources for sustainable programs, absence of the required culture chang e, lack of standardization and defined policies, and unavailability of vali d and reliable evaluation frameworks. Eight broad constructive action steps were suggested. Conclusions: The reported enablers can create momentum to carry telelearnin g into a position of prominence. The Canadian telehealth community recommen ds action steps that could facilitate the removal of barriers and maximize current opportunities.