Background

Telehealth implementation is a great solution for Indigenous older adults (OAs) due to the rise of chronic disease and other age-related health disorders. Telehealth is a promising option to increase quality of life, decrease healthcare costs, and offer more independent living.

Objectives

This scoping review investigated existing telehealth solutions that have been implemented to serve Indigenous OAs.

Methods

A structured search strategy was performed on 6 electronic databases: Ovid Medline, Ovid PsycINFO, Ovid Embase, EBSCOhost, Scopus and Cochrane. Studies were included in the review if they contained information on telehealth technologies for Indigenous OAs (aged 65 years and older). Grey literature was also explored in ProQuest Theses and Dissertations, ERIC, Google Advanced and various government websites from Canada, Australia/New Zealand and the USA.

Results

Twenty six articles were included and reviewed by two assessors. Analysis of the results from five countries revealed eight different types of telehealth solutions for Indigenous OAs. No documented telerehabilitation technologies were available to OAs in Indigenous Communities. Analysis of a broad range of Indigenous OAs with different chronic diseases revealed that they are seeking telehealth technologies for ease of access to health care, increased health equity and cost-effectiveness. Results revealed various advantages of telehealth for Indigenous OAs and barriers for implementing such technologies in Indigenous communities.

Conclusion

The use of telehealth technologies among OAs is expected to rise, but effective implementation will be successful only if the patient’s acceptance and culture are kept at the forefront, and if healthcare services are provided by telehealth-trained healthcare professionals.

中文翻译：

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土著老年人的数字保健技术：范围回顾

背景

由于慢性病和其他与年龄有关的健康疾病的上升，远程医疗的实施对于土著老年人（OAs）是一个很好的解决方案。远程医疗是提高生活质量，降低医疗费用并提供更多独立生活的一种有前途的选择。

目标

这项范围界定性审查调查了已实施以服务于本地OA的现有远程医疗解决方案。

方法

在6个电子数据库上执行了结构化搜索策略：Ovid Medline，Ovid PsycINFO，Ovid Embase，EBSCOhost，Scopus和Cochrane。如果研究中包含有关土著OA（65岁及65岁以上）远程医疗技术的信息，则该研究包括在评价中。在ProQuest论文和学位论文，ERIC，Google Advanced以及来自加拿大，澳大利亚/新西兰和美国的各种政府网站中，还探索了灰色文献。

结果

纳入了26条，并由两名评估员进行了审查。对来自五个国家的结果进行的分析显示，针对土著OA的八种远程医疗解决方案。没有文档化的远程康复技术可供土著社区的OA使用。对具有不同慢性疾病的各种土著OA进行的分析表明，他们正在寻求远程医疗技术，以简化医疗服务，提高健康公平性和成本效益。结果显示了远程医疗对土著OA的各种优势，以及在土著社区实施此类技术的障碍。

结论

预计OA中将使用远程医疗技术，但只有在患者的接受度和文化始终处于领先地位，并且由经过远程医疗培训的医疗保健专业人员提供医疗服务的情况下，有效实施才能成功。