Evaluation of Nurse Navigator Support for Patients During Telehealth Neurosurgery Clinics.

Abstract

Telehealth clinics have been used in many specialities, including neurosurgery, to improve access for patients in rural communities. The introduction of nurse navigators involved with the patient before, during and after the clinic was evaluated. Clinics were held in a rural hospital with a nurse navigator present in the clinic with the patient, and the physician consulting remotely. A patient satisfaction survey and audit were conducted following ten telehealth clinics. Twenty-one new patients were able to be contacted out of 31 (68%) with an 11 question structured survey. Eighteen out of 21 (86%) stated they were satisfied with the quality of the clinic compared with an in-person clinic. Overall satisfaction scores of 7-10 were scored by 18/21 patients (86%) on a scale of 1-10. An estimated 10785 km of travel was saved for patients going to a rural hospital clinic rather than the neurosurgical centre. This study shows that the supportive role of nurse navigators throughout the patient telehealth clinic pathway merits further continuing evaluation.