The year that was 2020 got us right up to speed on telepractice and we love it! So for those clients who also love it, we still offer it. In fact, we offer both Zooming and face-to-face!
What is telepractice?
Telepractice is the use of telecommunication to provide speech pathology services to clients. The speech pathologist typically uses videoconferencing to administer client sessions in real-time but may use other formats, such as email, for related communication. Telepractice is sometimes referred to as telehealth, telerehabilitation, or telespeech.
When would you use telehealth?
Telehealth can be a useful alternative when a face-to-face appointment isn’t possible, or where a third party in another location is included in the session. For example, if a client is experiencing flu-like symptoms but is well enough to participate in a therapy session, the session may take place via videoconference rather than having to be cancelled.
Informed consent
At Speech Pathology Tasmania we seek client’s informed consent to participate in telepractice consultations, including via videoconferencing platforms such as Zoom.
In order to give informed consent we ask clients to read our Informed Consent for Telepractice document. The document is available here. You may also request a copy to be emailed or printed for you.
The document provides information about:
- What a telepractice consultation involves
- The potential benefits and risks of telepractice
- Steps you can take to reduce potential risks
- Privacy protections
- What informed consent means. This includes information about your rights regarding telehealth.
Should you need to cancel a face-to-face appointment due to Covid-like symptoms, ask us about telepractice instead and we’ll send you a Zoom link.
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