Rural Telehealth Team Education for Baccalaureate and Nurse Practitioner Students

Abstract

Background: Rural areas face health care workforce shortages. Nursing students seeking rural employment require instruction and clinical experience in using telehealth to work in health care teams. Method: An innovative telehealth consultation simulation paired nurse practitioner (NP) students with prelicensure baccalaureate nursing degree (BSN) students. The simulation aimed to enhance NP student proficiency and confidence in telehealth consultation skills and to foster professional role development through exposure to telehealth nursing roles for RNs and NPs. On-campus BSN students assumed the role of the RN in a rural clinic and consulted with off-campus NP students using telehealth technology in the care of a standardized patient. Results: Participants demonstrated level-appropriate proficiency and reported confidence in telehealth consultation and favorable attitudes toward intraprofessional communication. Conclusion: An intraprofessional educational model allowing BSN and NP students to develop telehealth consultation skills successfully addressed a gap in preparing nursing students to meet rural health care workforce needs.