SearchWe support residential aged care homes (RACH) by enhancing their digital capacity, allowing better access to primary care services through virtual consultations when clinically appropriate.
Our PHN partnered with fifteen other PHNs across Australia to develop a comprehensive training package for staff in RACHs and the primary care providers who service them, including nurses, GPs, specialists and allied health professionals.
The telehealth training resources offer flexible and interactive learning experience for clinical and non-clinical staff such as essential telehealth skills, communication between healthcare providers, practical skills for using telehealth technology in aged care settings.
The training is endorsed for continuing professional development points (CPD) by the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners (RACGP), the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (ACRRM) and the Australian College of Nursing (ACN).
It is free of charge for all Commonwealth-funded RACHs and clinicians.
Key benefits of using telehealth in aged care settings
- improved access for both clinicians and residents
- convenience and greater choice
- improved continuity of care.
Training streams
There are two Training Streams
- Residential Aged Care developed for staff and clinicians working within RACHs. This includes personal care workers, nurses, specialists or managers.
- Remote Clinical designed for clinicians who are based offsite providing medical services for residents within aged care settings. This includes GPs, medical specialists or allied health professionals.
Each stream includes a series of eLearning modules which are about six minutes long. Modules are grouped into the following themes:
- general
- infrastructure
- logistics and support
- best practice
- models of care
- troubleshooting
Supplementary resources are also available to help clinicians and aged care staff implement telehealth.
Accessing the training
The RACH training program can be undertaken in three ways:
- individuals can complete the training through the RACH training program website, including primary care providers supporting residents in aged care homes or staff working in non Commonwealth-funded RACHs.
- individuals who work in a Commonwealth-funded RACH can complete the training the Alis - Aged Care Learning. Information Solution - which is available to all Australian government funded aged care providers and their employees.
- by uploading the modules into your organisation's learning management system (LMS), which has the added benefit of enabling an organisation to know which employees have completed the training.
How to implement the microlearning modules on your organisation’s learning management system (LMS):
- Register to request access to the modules. Your application will be reviewed and if eligible, access details will be sent by email.
- Select your stream to view the relevant module catalogue.
- Open a module to preview it and determine suitability.
- Download the module for uploading to your organisation’s LMS. Modules can be downloaded as a ZIP file containing a SCORM package or download the entire catalogue in a single ZIP file.
Visit the telehealth training website for more information.
Resources and support
Introduction to the Telehealth Training Program video on YouTube titled Telehealth Training Program for Residential Aged Care National Launch – 31 July 2024
For support, contact PHN’s aged care digital health team: digitalhealth@ddwmphn.com.au
