Acceptability and Usefulness of Telenursing from Nurses' Perspectives: A Descriptive Pilot Study.

Background

Nurses' perspectives on telenursing are essential to improving its use by patients and nurses.

Objective

This descriptive pilot study aims to assess the acceptability and usefulness of telenursing among nurses through a questionnaire developed by the authors. Additionally, the internal consistency of the instrument was assessed.

Methods

A cross-sectional descriptive pilot study was conducted using an online survey and a 43-item questionnaire in October 2024. Convenience sampling was used to enrol interested nurses employed in any setting. Inferential statistical tests were conducted to assess the associations between the variables. Additionally, the internal consistency of the questionnaire was tested using Cronbach's alpha. The study was conducted in accordance with the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology (STROBE) guidelines. Consent was obtained from the involved nurses and the relevant Ethics Committee.

Results

In total, 53 Italian nurses were included. A total of 94.4% of them would use telenursing in clinical practice and would be interested in attending educational programmes on telenursing (86.8%). The analysis suggested that nurses' positive attitudes towards telenursing are predicted by their gender (being female), knowledge, strategic management support, and the time-saving potential of telenursing. A Cronbach's α of 0.86 suggested a good internal reliability of the questionnaire.

Conclusions

The study findings suggest positive nurses' acceptability and utility for telenursing, positively predicted by gender, knowledge, potential time-saving benefits of telehealth nursing, and organisational support. A positive attitude towards telenursing could encourage its use among nurses and patients. These preliminary findings should be confirmed in a future validation study.