Newswise — PHILADELPHIA (April 15, 2020) – During these times of uncertainty, we’re all having to change what we do and how we do it—including health care providers who have had to swiftly migrate to telehealth to offer care that doesn’t require patients to travel and visit crowded facilities for treatment. To help meet this urgent need, Penn Nursing is offering its new online training in best practices for telehealth to all health care providers, free of charge, and each completed course provides 2 CEUs. Click here to visit and use the code ASPIRE100 when registering.

“Penn Nursing may be the #1 ranked nursing school in the world, but we must always be #1 for the world—and that is why we are offering our Telehealth course free of charge at this time,” said Penn Nursing Dean Antonia Villarruel. “Healthcare providers integrating Telehealth into their practice require evidence-based instruction on best practices to effectively serve their patients, many of whom are sheltering in place. Just like nurses have done throughout history, we are stepping in to meet healthcare needs at a time when we are needed most.”

This course provides an overview of the field of telemedicine and telehealth, the history of the field, types of telehealth applications, and discusses practical considerations such as issues pertaining to licensure, reimbursement, and workflow. The spectrum of activity ranging from research into implications of system design for applications that bridge geographic distance to the development of practical applications is considered, in both historical context and in case studies. The current status and future trends of this emerging domain are reviewed.

“During the COVID-19 crisis, significant barriers to the wide adoption of telehealth have been lifted. Many providers are now eager to do telehealth, said Penn Integrates Knowledge University Professor and faculty instructor for the course, George Demiris, PhD, FACMI. “This is a modality that we’ll be using for a long time.”

This course is fully online and self-paced. Learners may start the course at any time and move through the course material at any speed they choose. Upon completing this course, learners will earn continuing education credit which may be applied to their current healthcare licensure requirements. The Telehealth course is part of Penn Nursing’s new initiative, Aspire, a suite of specialized online courses, and academic products and services designed for individuals and institutions who are dedicated to advancing innovation in health care.

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About the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing

The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing is one of the world’s leading schools of nursing. For the fifth year in a row, it is ranked the #1 nursing school in the world by QS University and is consistently ranked highly in the U.S. News & World Report annual list of best graduate schools. Penn Nursing is currently ranked # 1 in funding from the National Institutes of Health, among other schools of nursing, for the third consecutive year. Penn Nursing prepares nurse scientists and nurse leaders to meet the health needs of a global society through innovation in research, education, and practice. Follow Penn Nursing on: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, & Instagram.