Sasseville, Bailey Caroline
(2022)
Genetic Counselors’ Perspectives on Limited-English Proficient Patients’ Access to Telemedicine Services Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Master's Thesis, University of Pittsburgh.
(Unpublished)
This is the latest version of this item.
Abstract
Service delivery models (SDMs) used to provide genetic counseling services to patients have expanded in recent years. Counseling that was conducted almost solely in face-to-face settings can now be conducted via telephone, or via video conference, also known as telemedicine. Telemedicine has been shown to expand services and maintain patient satisfaction (Raspa et al., 2021). During the COVID-19 pandemic, many medical systems and their healthcare professionals, including genetic counselors (GCs), rapidly implemented telemedicine services to continue providing necessary services. Limited-English proficient (LEP) patients, who already experience health inequities, may have been negatively affected by this change: 47% of GCs experienced barriers in seeing specific populations during the pandemic, including patients who need interpreter services (Pan et al., 2021).
There is currently limited information describing the impact of this shift to telemedicine on the LEP patient population. A survey was distributed to GCs via the NSGC listserv. Out of 45 respondents, 80% (n=36) increased telemedicine because of COVID-19. Twenty-nine (64.4%) believed LEP patients experienced barriers in accessing GC services because of the pandemic, and 44.4% (n=20) believed increasing telemedicine services contributed to barriers. Twenty-five (55.6%) prefer in-person counseling of LEP patients, while 44.4% (n=20) were unsure what LEP patients prefer. In response to open-ended questions, participants noted limitations including technical difficulties, insufficient interpreters, and lack of GC training. Benefits of telemedicine included convenience and flexibility. Responses also suggested the need to tailor the SDM to patients’ individual needs.
Identification of these barriers lays the groundwork in the process to expand genetic counseling services in a thoughtful and inclusive manner and to reduce health inequities. This study is important to public health because in a profession made up overwhelmingly of English-speaking, White individuals, identifying barriers in provision of services to diverse and underserved populations is essential to providing equitable services.
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Details
| Item Type: |
University of Pittsburgh ETD
|
| Status: |
Unpublished |
| Creators/Authors: |
| Creators | Email | Pitt Username | ORCID  |
|---|
| Sasseville, Bailey Caroline | bcs56@pitt.edu | bcs56 | |
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| ETD Committee: |
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| Date: |
12 May 2022 |
| Date Type: |
Publication |
| Defense Date: |
11 April 2022 |
| Approval Date: |
12 May 2022 |
| Submission Date: |
25 April 2022 |
| Access Restriction: |
No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately. |
| Number of Pages: |
112 |
| Institution: |
University of Pittsburgh |
| Schools and Programs: |
School of Public Health > Genetic Counseling |
| Degree: |
MS - Master of Science |
| Thesis Type: |
Master's Thesis |
| Refereed: |
Yes |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: |
telegenetics
telemedicine
COVID-19
Limited-English proficiency
genetic counseling
Interpreter
Inequities |
| Date Deposited: |
12 May 2022 14:24 |
| Last Modified: |
12 May 2022 14:24 |
| URI: |
http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/42741 |
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Genetic Counselors’ Perspectives on Limited-English Proficient Patients’ Access to Telemedicine Services Amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic. (deposited 12 May 2022 14:24)
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