Virtual course for integration of telehealth in the primary health care with the application of simulation models - 2023

The Telehealth Training Center is an initiative of the Pan American Health Organization whose main purpose is to integrate telehealth at the first level of care in order to promote and contribute to the necessary digital transformation in the Region of the Americas. The training center activities are focused on the actions of prevention, promotion, diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of non-communicable diseases.

The training center consists of a professional development program to support the creation of resilient health systems in the post-pandemic era. Its design is based on various learning environments and is scalable for the continuous training of health personnel in the Region of the Americas in the area of Telehealth under the GE learning modality.

Purpose:
The Telehealth training center`s objective is that, upon completion, participants will be able to integrate telehealth at the first level of care and be able to facilitate actions for the prevention, promotion, diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of non- communicable diseases.

Competencies:
Upon completion of all training center activities, the participants will be able to:

• Explain the functions and benefits of telehealth for a better understanding of its operation at the first level of care.
• Identify the basic organizational and technological structure for the operation of telehealth services at the first level of care.
• Recognize teleconsultations as an essential element for the implementation of telehealth at the first level of care.
• Identify the digital tools associated with teleconsultations as fundamental components for the implementation of telehealth at the first level of care.
• Identify the main types of teleconsultations for a better understanding of how telehealth works at the first level of care.
• Describe the normative regulations, ethics, and communication strategies necessary for the operation of telehealth at the first level of care.
• Explain the main barriers that telehealth faces at the first level of care to facilitate the operation of telehealth services.
• Distinguish between good and bad practices in telehealth in order to promote the provision of efficient and quality services.
• Contextualize learning about prevention, promotion, diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of non-communicable diseases in different scenarios.

Target Population:
The training center is directed towards workers in the health sector in the Region of the Americas who have no prior knowledge of telehealth and who are interested in training and learning about its potential.

Modality:
Self-paced, virtual course, free, open to the public, and without deadlines for completion.

Duration:
Forty (40) hours.
The training center is an open-access platform, as it is a self-paced learning space. Participants can set their own hours and study on their own schedule.

Structure:
The Telehealth Training Center is made up of 3 trainings (modules), with two missions per training. These trainings are linked to a data center where all the information to be able to solve the missions is found, as well as an overall description of each training and activity. 

The above course description is presented in the following table:

Didactic strategies:
The main strategies of this training are gamification and simulation.
The activities consist of animated and interactive scenarios that represent real situations which are useful for the promotion of learning and require the participant`s involvement. These scenarios refer to learning elements in different formats which include interactive videos, practical exercises, case studies, and other audiovisual elements such as infographics, posters, images, etc.

Evaluation and certification:
Upon completion of all activities in the training center, participants must pass a "final exam" consisting of twenty multiple-choice questions associated with the simulator in level 2.
The final exam is designed to offer participants multiple opportunities to answer correctly until they achieve the required score of at least 70% correct.
Participants who meet these requirements and complete the quality survey of the Virtual Campus for Public Health (VCPH) will be able to download their completion certificate from the training center issued by the Pan American Health Organization.