Item 7: I am confident that I know how telehealth works

Item 7, “I am confident that I know how telehealth works,” obtained the lowest mean rating,
which indicates an “Acceptable” on the overall descriptive rating. It may be due to the
respondents' lack of confidence in using technology, especially older adults. Besides, they
tend to be alone at home and cannot ask for assistance during a telehealth consultation.
Unlike in the hospital, they can inquire directly to healthcare providers and ask follow-up
questions without hesitation. It implies that people unfamiliar with technologies and needing
assistance to learn could be a significant barrier to accepting telehealth and its services.
Thus, supportive measures provided by families or caregivers can assist elderlies in feeling
less overwhelmed and frustrated when adapting to new technology.

As explained in the study of Wiseman et al. (2015), all patients claimed they would be
willing to respond to questions about their health on a smartphone. However, patients
identified several potential difficulties in adopting a smartphone wound-monitoring protocol,
including logistics related to taking photos, health-related questions, and coordination with
caregivers.

Educational Attainment

The level of acceptability of telehealth has no significant relationship to educational

attainment. It might imply that those with a bachelor's degree or less, and those with no
formal education, are less likely to be highly willing to accept telehealth. It may be due to the
unfamiliarity of using advanced technologies for health as an alternative method of care. In
addition, they may not have access to and are not well-versed in current digital technology.

This result contradicted the study by Fischer et al. (2020), which explains differences in
education: those with a high school education or less, compared with those with advanced
degrees, were less likely to be willing or willing to participate in videoconferencing. In the
same way, using video visits may improve communication but requires an internet
connection and technology navigation, which can highlight healthcare disparities (Naves et
al., 2021).