How Telehealth can be Incorporated into the Surveillance System - Research Paper

Introduction

One of the ways in which telehealth can be incorporated into the disease surveillance system is by ensuring that the surveillance system is compatible with mobility and cloud access. Forbes (2018) estimated that 65% of interactions with healthcare facilities were conducted over mobile devices in 2018. Consequently, it is critical to ensure that modern surveillance systems are linked to mobile applications to enhance faster and timely delivery of disease data (Baldwin, Singh, Sittig, & Giardina, 2017; Dinesen et al., 2016; Petrazzi et al., 2015). In support for the need to use mobile apps in disease surveillance, recent estimates indicate that 80% of the doctors are already using smartphones and medical applications in their daily practice.

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Similarly, the need for incorporation of mobility and cloud access into surveillance systems is attributable to the fact that hospitals and insurance systems currently keep health records in the cloud (Kavitha, Kannan, & Kotteswaran, 2016; Lian, 2017). This has enabled ready access to the medical records all the time. Consequently, by ensuring that the surveillance system is integrated with mobile apps, it is possible to have real-time incidence and mortality data about a particular disease (Crico et al., 2018; Karimuribo et al., 2017; Naddeo, Verde, Forastiere, De Pietro, & Sannino, 2017).

Implications of Telehealth for the Surveillance of Lung Cancer

The incorporation of the telehealth system in surveillance of lung cancer has important implications for the healthcare system. First, mobile apps have been reported to be associated with the real-time collection of surveillance data. Timely collection of disease information is vital in healthcare because it enables healthcare professionals always to be updated on various aspects of the disease such as mortality and incidence. This allows them to develop appropriate interventions strategies needed to curb further spread of the disease.

Secondly, integrating mobile apps has been found to increase the timeliness, accuracy, and completeness of surveillance. Accuracy in disease reporting is a prerequisite to detecting disease outbreaks and is useful in the implementation of appropriate strategies for their control. Through accurate representation what is happening in the ground, smartphone-based telehealth systems improve the likelihood of saving the affected population or community from an impending catastrophe

The Benefits and Challenges of Incorporating the Telehealth System Surveillance System

One of the benefits that can be accrued from incorporating mobile-based apps into disease surveillance system is improved the timeliness of reporting of the data. Timeliness is an essential attribute in surveillance because by getting disease information in real time, public health professionals will be in a better position to stop further spread of the disease. Consequently, timely capture of disease data helps in the long-term reduction of mortality and in decreased morbidity too.

Despite its benefits, incorporating telehealth system in surveillance system can be problematic. One of the challenges that have been reported in smartphone-based telehealth systems is delayed relay of data occasioned by limited connectivity, especially in the rural areas. For instance, according to Beyene et al. (2018), poor internet connection led to the 13-day delayed submission of data in rural locations and 2-day delay in well-connected areas. Consequently, it is important to ensure that Internet-based telehealth system should only be integrated into disease surveillance system in areas with stable internet connections. This is because when transmission of data is slowed data, the data received in the surveillance system will not be an actual representation of what is currently occurring.

References

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