A Systems Thinking Guided Decision Support Tool for the Integration of Telehealth in School-Based Health Centers

Addressing health equity and managing healthcare workforce shortages are two major challenges healthcare leaders and policymakers face today. Workforce shortage is much worse in the pediatric healthcare sector which caters to a quarter of the U.S. population. With pediatric workforce shortages further exacerbated by geographical maldistribution and uneven spread across medical subspecialties, health equity for children falls short. School-based health centers have played a vital role in reducing health disparities. Telehealth has the potential to improve pediatric healthcare access as well as address the clinical workforce shortage. Integration of telehealth in school-based health centers can provide the much-needed momentum for achieving health equity for children. However, additional demands on hospitals due to telehealth integration in school-based health centers require prioritizing staff and resource allocation. Successful implementation of school-based telehealth requires a holistic approach guided by systems thinking. Taking into account the synergies associated with the interconnectedness of parts of the system, this research is an attempt at generating a decision support tool using statistical methods and simulation for the implementation of school-based telehealth in the District of Columbia.

Author

• Bhuvanendran, Shivaprasad

Language

• en

Keyword

• Telehealth
• Health equity
• Healthcare management
• Simulation
• School-based health centers
• Systems thinking

Date created

• 2022

Type of Work

• Dissertation

License

• All rights reserved

Rights statement

• In Copyright

GW Unit

• Engineering Management

Degree

• D.Engr.

Advisor

• Blackford, Joseph P

Committee Member(s)

• Etemadi, Amir
• Blackburn, Timothy

Persistent URL

•  https://scholarspace.library.gwu.edu/etd/7p88ch529