RECOVER Injury Research Centre

Consumer Roundtable 2022: Bringing researchers to the consumer table to explore telehealth

The event

The Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences, the Faculty of Medicine and the RECOVER Injury Research Centre co-hosted a Consumer Roundtable 2022: Bringing researchers to the consumer table to explore telehealth on Monday the 10th of October 2022 at the beautiful Victoria Park Garden Room, Herston.

This was a consumer-led event and attendees included thirty-five consumers and twenty-two academics representing schools and centres across both faculties.

The event program included short presentations followed by group discussions. 

Speakers included consumer representatives, Metro-North researchers, Queensland Health Telehealth Support Unit and UQ researchers. The program can be viewed here (PDF, 85.5 KB).

The aims

The Consumer Roundtable 2022 brought consumers together with researchers from the Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences and the Faculty of Medicine to explore the future of telehealth.

The Roundtable aimed to build a greater understanding between the two expert groups (consumers and researchers) and raise awareness of the value of consumers as members of a multidisciplinary research team.

 

 

Why telehealth?

The University of Queensland’s consumers have identified that telehealth has become a core part of healthcare across a range of medical conditions, including GP practice, specialist consultation, aged care, mental health, rehabilitation, maternity care, and rural health services.

COVID-19 has accelerated the expansion of telehealth and at times outpacing the development of government policy, funding arrangements and evidence-based approaches.

The outcomes

The first outcome from the roundtable event was a series of pictorial graphic displays. The first display captured health consumer responses to three discussion topics:

  • What does ‘telehealth’ mean to you? What counts as telehealth?
  • When does telehealth work for you, and when doesn't it?
  • What do policy makers, health workers and decision makers need to know about community perspectives on telehealth?

The second display captured the research ideas generated in response to a whole group discussion around:

  • What do consumers want telehealth research to investigate next?

Eighteen consumers responded to the invitation to identify their three highest priority research questions from the Roundtable harvest discussion. The questions most likely to be prioritised by consumer participants were:

  1. How does telehealth impact on access to healthcare for marginalised groups and stigmatised conditions?
  2. What do people using telehealth services miss? How can this be remedied?
  3. Do consumers experience telehealth as compassionate? How is compassion conveyed via telehealth?
 Other outcomes from the roundtable
  • Established a shared approach to consumer engagement across HABS and Medicine and created an annual forum for consumer-led dialogue about emerging issues, which could be explored through new research partnerships with consumers.
  • Strengthened relationships with health consumers interested in research.
  • Built greater understanding between the two expert groups (consumers and researchers) of their respective contributions to research
  • Raised awareness of the value of consumers as members of multidisciplinary research teams.

What next?

  • The graphic display is to be featured at an upcoming event.
  • Researchers are currently reviewing consumer contributions for potential research partnerships.
  • Researchers have incorporated consumer contributions into research priority setting.
  • A publication about the roundtable consultation method was recently published.

  • We are proud to announce that the collaborative team from the Faculties of Medicine and Health and Behavioural Sciences, the RECOVER Injury Research Centre, and partners at the UQ Rural Clinical School have secured grant funding from the Office of the Queensland Chief Scientist, Engaging Science 2023 grant round. The funds will be used to host a 2023 Consumer Roundtable event in the regional town of Dalby, "Community Priorities in Regional and Rural Health Research".

Publication

A publication about the roundtable consultation method was recently published and our consumer network can access the publication to read (online only) here:  Bringing researchers to the consumer table: The process and outcomes of a consumer roundtable on telehealth.

Jenkinson B, Maxwell J, Bell A, Young, A., Smith, A.C., Christoffersen, A., Trevor, D., Young, L., Russell, T.  Bringing researchers to the consumer table: The process and outcomes of a consumer roundtable on telehealth. Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare. 2023;0(0). doi:10.1177/1357633X231188536

 

More information

Contact one of the UQ organising committee Dr Bec Jenkinson r.jenkinson@uq.edu.au, Jo Maxwell jo.maxwell@uq.edu.au or Alison Bell alison.bell@uq.edu.au.