Telehealth in Homeless Population

Telehealth in Homeless Population

Telehealth in Homeless Population

Telehealth in Homeless Population 4

Telehealth in Homeless Population

Oluwafunmilola Kila

Herzing University

Technology has indeed risen in the past and it is important to have all the sectors advance and join the technology world where things are done with the use of technology. One of the sectors which have really advanced in technology, and where most of the people involved in technology have decided to focus on is the health sector. The health sector has seen a tremendous advancement in the technology sector. It is important to have all the things take the technological turn. Telehealth involves the use of telecommunications and virtual technology to deliver health care outside of traditional health-care facilities (Taylor, 2016). Telehealth has made things very easy in the health sector and even made it more efficient. There are different tools which are applied in order to make telehealth possible and which have been used in the health sector especially in areas where there is inefficiency or areas which are hard to access. Telehealth has been used to enhance health in the homeless areas and populations, with areas of their focus including the hygiene, reproductive health as well as the health education. Telehealth has really been important in enhancement of health among these youths in the homeless areas, mainly in rural areas where access is not easy. Thus, it is essential to enhance the process. There are efforts which need to be put in place to ensure that the telehealth process is successful as well as taking in the required resources and making up for the time needed in the face to face meetings.

The youths are the most affected people by health issues in the homeless regions, which are in the rural areas. These youths need to be factored in the health sector in order to enhance their health. These youths have challenges in keeping their hygiene as they are not well educated on the importance of hygiene and the importance of keeping their environment clean trough proper waste disposal as well as through keeping their own selves safe and clean. The youths are also much affected by reproductive health issues. The reproductive health is a big issue among the youths even in most parts of the world. The homeless youths have no knowledge about the importance of their reproductive hygiene and keeping their productive processes safe. As a result, they will need to be well trained about their reproductive health and the importance of being safe. This will help them avoid such diseases as the sexually transmitted diseases as well as to avoid unwanted pregnancies and having the right number of children, the number of children whom they can properly take care of in the future (Tuckson, 2017). It is also very important to make sure that these youths receive health education on the importance of their physical health, which involves physical exercise as well as taking on healthy diet, which is balanced diet as most of the youths in the rural areas and mainly the homeless youths.

Telehealth will have a great impact on the health of these homeless youths and help in improving their health. Through the efforts of telehealth, these youths will be able to access health related videos and audios to educate them on the importance of keeping healthy all the time. These video clips will be made specially to convey information to the youths and this will be made as simple as possible in order to make sure that they are understandable to all the youths as most of those homeless youths are not able to go to school and learn about the principles of good health (Dorsey, 2016). The simplicity of the videos and audio clips will ensure that even the uneducated youths are able to understand all that acts. The efforts of this telehealth program of technology will really enhance a healthy living among the homeless youths in the rural areas.

In order to access if the information given through the telehealth program, it is important to access the results closely. The results of this process can only be accessed by accessing the living conditions of the youths who have been run through this program. If the program has been well understood, the youths should be able to respond positively to their hygiene. They should take great care of their hygiene by wearing clean clothes and also taking their baths regularly. They should also be able to keep the environment they are living in as clean as possible. If the information has been understood well, the youths should also be able to keep their reproductive health without safe and there should be very little or no cases of reproductive diseases or unwanted pregnancies and children who are not planned for. Their physical health should also improve as they will be able to take balanced diet as well as taking on physical exercise.

There are various resources which are needed in order to make telehealth possible. The main resources needed are the technological resources which include display screens for the video displays and the audio conveyors for the audio conveyors. These will enable the people to access the resources properly. The other important resource needed is space. There is need for a good space which will enable the people to have access to these video displays as well as the audios (Noel, 2004). These people should always be access the information together so that they may also discuss. There also should be a person to interpret the information as well as answer any questions which may arise from the audience in the process of the training and to make the information better understood.

It is important to always make up to the fact that you cannot meet face to face with the youths during the training. It is important at some point to have a physical meeting with these audiences in order to establish a rapport with them. This will help them to appreciate the presence of their doctor. There are also technological ways of meeting with them. By the use of video conferencing, it is possible to communicate with them effectively and directly and also have them ask questions directly as they will be seeing you. This has all been made possible by the technology aspect of the medical as well as the communication sector which has made life really easy.

Reference

Dorsey, E. R., & Topol, E. J. (2016). State of telehealth. New England Journal of Medicine,

375(2), 154-161.

Noel, H. C., Vogel, D. C., Erdos, J. J., Cornwall, D., & Levin, F. (2004). Home telehealth reduces healthcare costs. Telemedicine Journal & e-Health, 10(2), 170-183.

Taylor, E. M., Kendzor, D. E., Reitzel, L. R., & Businelle, M. S. (2016). Health risk factors and desire to change among homeless adults. American journal of health behavior, 40(4), 455-460.

Tuckson, R. V., Edmunds, M., & Hodgkins, M. L. (2017). Telehealth. New England Journal of Medicine, 377(16), 1585-1592.