Indian journal of psychiatry
-
Indian J Psychiatry · Oct 2018
Innovative telementoring for addiction management for remote primary care physicians: A feasibility study.
Addiction is a growing public health problem which affects the person, the whole family, and society. The primary care physician (PCP) is often the first point of contact in the health care and can play a significant role in the early detection and intervention. It is well established that early intervention is associated with better outcomes. In the formal medical training, PCPs receive no formal training on drug addiction management. In this pilot study, we developed an innovative telementoring model and looked at feasibility as well as acceptability among remote PCPs on drug addiction management. ⋯ It has been feasible to connect an academic hub, i.e., NIMHANS to the PCPs of 36 remote districts of Bihar and conduct multipoint videoconference-based tele-ECHO clinics. The results indicate high participant retention. The learners are comfortable in adapting new technology-based learning as evidenced by high rate of e-learning assignment completion. These findings suggest that this new innovative learning model using technology can be an important modality for effective training to address management of drug addiction.