Theoretical Framework

Telemedicine services can have a wide range of outcomes and can be studied in a variety

of ways. A model for assessment of telemedicine (MAST) was developed to help those who

develop new telemedicine services produce the information that healthcare managers need to

evaluate and make investment decisions in telemedicine. Model for Assessment of Telemedicine

(MAST) includes pre-implementation assessment (e.g. by use of participatory design), followed

by multidisciplinary assessment, including description of the patients and the application and

assessment of safety, clinical effectiveness, patient perspectives, economic aspects organizational

aspects and socio-cultural, legal and ethical aspects.

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assessment-of-telemedicine
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In practice the use of MAST includes three steps: (1) Preceding assessment, (2)

Multidisciplinary assessment; and (3) Transferability assessment.

 Firstly, the assessment must start with preceding considerations to determine whether it is

relevant for an institution at a given point in time to carry out the assessment. This step involves

mainly assessment of the maturity of the technology and the organization planning to use it. If

the technology is not matured and have not been tested in practice, then pilot studies must be

carried out to mature the technology before a multidisciplinary study is initiated.

Secondly, after the preceding considerations, the multidisciplinary assessment is carried

out to describe and assess the different outcomes of the telemedicine application. This involves

assessment of outcomes within the seven domains: Domain 1: Health problem and characteristics

of the application, Domain 2: Safety, Domain 3: Clinical effectiveness, Domain 4: Patient

perspectives, Domain 5: Economic aspects, Domain 6: Organizational aspects, Domain 7: Socio-

cultural, ethical and legal aspects.

Thirdly, in relation to the description of the outcomes, an assessment should also be made

of the transferability of the results to other settings or countries.

If the goal of a telemedicine application assessment is to describe effectiveness and

contribution to quality of care and to provide a basis for decision making, MAST defines the

relevant assessment framework as a multidisciplinary process that summarizes and evaluates

information about medical, social, economic, and ethical issues related to the use of telemedicine

in a systematic, unbiased, and robust manner.

Conceptual Framework

The researchers was guided by the model presented below.

STEP 2 STEP 3
STEP 1
 Timeliness Domains:Multidisciplinary  Transferability
Effectiveness of of
Preceding Consideration  Demographic Telemedicine
 Relevance
Assessment
Profile of the
the result
Services
Respondents
 Safeness
 Accessibility
 Accuracy of
Information
 Security and
Privacy
 Respondent’s
Perception
INDEPENDENT VARIABLE
DEPENDENT VARIABLES
Figure 1. An adaptation model of MAST showing the variables of the study.

This model is an adaptation of Model for Assessment of Telemedicine (MAST). It

illustrates the step-by-step assessment on the effectiveness of Telemedicine Services using the

variables of the study.

Fist, the assessment start with preceding considerations to determine whether the target

locale consider the relevance and timeliness of using telemedicine services. Its actual goal is to

answer the question, "Is the use of Telemedicine Services relevant and timely in the Municipality

of Santa Cruz's COVID-19 response?".

 Second, after the preceding considerations, the multidisciplinary assessment is carried out

to describe and assess the different outcomes of the telemedicine services. Instead of using the

original 7 domains of MAST, the researchers use the dependent variables of the study as its own

domain. This involves: (1) Demographic Profile of the Respondents, (2) Safeness of

Telemedicine Services, (3) Accessibility of Telemedicine Services, (4) Accuracy of Information

of Telemedicine Services, (5) Security and Privacy of Telemedicine Services, (6) Respondent’s

Perception in the Effectiveness of Telemedicine Services.

Third and last, in relation to the description of the outcomes, according to MAST – an

assessment should also be made of the transferability of the results to other settings. So instead

of using Healthcare workers who provides Telemedicine Services as the respondents, the

researchers use the target clients which is the residents who experience telemedicine services of

the municipality to be its respondents to avoid biasness in assessing the effectiveness of

telemedicine services from which is the independent variabe of the study.