Abstract
The objective of this study was to investigate stakeholders’ views on the feasibility and acceptability of a pilot speech pathology teletherapy program for children attending schools in rural New South Wales, Australia. Nine children received speech pathology sessions delivered via Adobe Connect® web-conferencing software. During semi-structured interviews, school principals (n = 3), therapy facilitators (n = 7), and parents (n = 6) described factors that promoted or threatened the program’s feasibility and acceptability. Themes were categorized according to whether they related to (a) the use of technology; (b) the school-based nature of the program; or (c) the combination of using technology with a school-based program. Despite frequent reports of difficulties with technology, teletherapy delivery of speech pathology services in schools was highly acceptable to stakeholders. However, the use of technology within a school environment increased the complexities of service delivery. Service providers should pay careful attention to planning processes and lines of communication in order to promote efficiency and acceptability of teletherapy programs.
Highlights
Delivery of allied health services to rural and remote communities presents a major challenge in many countries
It is unknown how such findings apply to telepractice in other locations, and whether positive perceptions of teletherapy are maintained within communities without a strong tradition of speech pathology involvement in schools
In this program, called the Come N See (CNS) program, children identified as having speech and/or language difficulties via in-person assessments received a maximum of twelve 30minute speech pathology teletherapy sessions on a fortnightly basis between February and August 2013
Summary
Delivery of allied health services to rural and remote communities presents a major challenge in many countries. The objective of this preliminary study was to investigate key stakeholders’ (i.e., parents, school principals, and school staff) views on the feasibility and acceptability of the CNS program in delivering speech pathology services to children with communication difficulties attending schools in rural areas.
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