eHospital

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gtgt eHospital

• e-learning opportunities
• for adult patients
• during hospitalisation
• in health-care institutions

FEPI Conference 2007 Cavtat, 25-28 September 2007
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eHospital
e-learning opportunities for adult
patientsduring hospitalisation in health-care
institutions

• A project funded by the
• European Commissions
• Socrates / Grundtvig programme

• Duration
• 1.10 2005-30.9.2008

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eHospital partners

• die Berater, Austria
• (Coordinator)
• Donau-Universität Krems, Austria
• Bildungswerk der
• Sächsischen Wirt- schaft, Germany
• Academy of Management Lodzi,
• Poland

• CESGA, Spain
• Universidade de Santiago de Compostela,
  Spain
• ORT France
• Ynternet.org, Switzerland
• (associated partner)

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die Berater
Our competences

• Soft skills trainings
• IT trainings
• Language courses
• Coaching
• Outplacement
• Consulting
• Job seeker seminars
• EU projects

Some facts

• Training and consulting company
• 400 members of staff
• around 50 branches in Austria
• ca. 16.000 participants per year
• 15.500 m² training facilities
• tailor-made seminars

Our approach

• The person is most important
• Fair Play
• Social responsibility

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Learning while at hospital?

• Lifelong learning for all is a declared policy
  aim of the European Union and its member states.
• One group of adults has been denied access to
  learning, though
• Patients who are forced to spend a longer period
  at hospital due to severe or chronic illness.
• However, the potential benefits of learning
  activities during hospitalisation are
  undisputable

• Learning at hospital can
• help coping with isolation
• open a window to the outside world
• ease reintegration into normal life
• and thus potentially contributes to patients
  mental and physical convalescence.

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Why e-learning?

• Computer-assisted learning has a great potential
  in this specific educational context.
• Hospital patients are restricted in their
  mobility and can therefore profit from being
  independent on the time-space coordinates of
  conventional face-to-face learning.
• Social interaction and joint learning activities
  with peers become possible with the help of
  virtual tools.

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The starting point of eHospital
A successful national project which started at a
childrens hospital in Vienna and is now
implemented in several hospitals all-over Austria
ECDL for children suffering from cancer
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eHospital Corner stones

• Experience from the ECDL projects with young
  cancer patientsLearning can produce an enormous
  emotional boost for long-term patients.
• In many European countries there are hospital
  schools for school-age children, but there are no
  learning provisions for adult patients.
• Transfer of the experience from the ECDL projects
  to
• other age groups (adults)
• other patients groups
• other learning topics
• other countries
• Investigation of the potential of e-learning for
  patient education
• Academic evaluation of the learning activities by
  two universities

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What the eHospital project is doing

• Desk researchValuable lessons can be learned
  from the experience gained in successful
  e-learning projects at hospital schools for
  children This existing experience is examined
  and adapted to the learning needs of adult
  patients.
• Pilot coursesLocal e-learning courses for
  different groups of patients have been designed
  and tested in Austria, Germany, Poland, Spain,
  France, and Switzerland.

The main activities of the project between
October 2005 and September 2008

• EvaluationThe adequacy of the e-learning tools
  used and the effects of the courses on the
  patients are carefully evaluated.
• Guidance for trainersFor the first time
  guidance materials for adult educators who wish
  to work in hospitals will be developed.
• DisseminationThe project results will be
  presented at an international dissemination
  conference in spring 2008.

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Project framework
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eHospital The Austrian course

• In cooperation with AKH Vienna
• 15-25 year-old patients of neuro-oncology,
  neuro-paediatrics, epilepsy, cardiology, dialysis
• Patients after brain surgery with severe
  cognitive impairments (reduced memory, short
  attention span)
• Long periods of hospitalisation or day patients
• Disrupted school education and / or vocational
  training
• No educational offers in hospital after end of
  compulsory school
• Challenge Entry into labour market

• Topic Job Perspectives
• What is e-learning?
• Career decisions
• Work labour market, unemployment, job-hunting
• Job application training
• Soft Skills Personal strengths and weaknesses,
  defining aims, communication

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eHospital The other courses
Alzheimer patients Basic IT and internet skills
Patients with lung diseases Languages for
travelling Information management
Patient groups topics
Patients with spinal cord injuries Digital
literacy for re-entry in the labour market
Elderly patients Maintaining physical and mental
mobility
Patients with temporary mental health
problems History of art creativity
Patients in soft psychiatric treatment The art
of profiling on the web
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What eHospital offers to you

• A research report on the state of the art of
  educational activities in European hospitals
• A documentation of successful e-learning projects
  in hospitals
• A learning management system and course content
  adapted to the needs of e-learning in hospital
• A guidance publication for adult educators
  wishing to work in hospitals (2008)

• Are you an adult educator or e-learning
  facilitator?
• Do you want to develop and offer learning
  activities for hospital patients?
• Or are you a health professional and do you want
  to introduce educational activities in your
  hospital?

If you answer one of these questions positively
eHospital may have interesting products for you
Please visit our website www.ehospital-project.ne
t
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First evaluation results

• The diverse learning offers were very much
  appreciated by all patient groups and hospital
  staff involvedE-learning for hospital patients
  is wanted and accepted!
• The personal relationship between patient learner
  and tutor is crucial.E-learning in hospitals
  needs frequent and intensive face-to face
  contactsOnly blended learning can be a
  successful e-learning strategy.
• Learning achievements can occur at different
  levelsacquisition of new skills improving
  employability learning for personal fulfilment
  increase of motivation and mental strength
  activity diverting attention from illness.Each
  type of learning achievement is equally valuable!
  

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First evaluation results

• Learning provisions must be extremely flexible
  and individualised with regard to
• content
• duration
• intensity of the course offered.
• Keys to flexibility are IT-supported learning
  and modularisation.
• Close cooperation between e-learning providers /
  tutors and hospital staff is necessary.Various
  groups of staff are concerned medical nursing-
  psychological educational administrative -
  technical.Hospital staff has an important role
  in selecting and motivating patients, organising
  learning times, supporting learners, giving
  information and feedback to tutors.

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E-learning in Hospitals critical points

• It is crucial that the top management of the
  hospital fully sup-ports the learning project A
  formalised cooperation contract and the
  appointment of contact persons within the
  hospital are useful.
• Staff in hospitals often work under extreme
  pressure of time and emotional strain. This needs
  to be taken into account when planning the
  cooperation. Necessary meetings ought to be
  integrated in the existing hospital routine and
  should not produce additional strains. Feasible
  communication channels should be defined early.
• The average duration of hospitalisation is
  decreasing due to financial restraints of the
  health system. To engage in e-learning makes only
  sense if patients
• are hospitalised for at least two weeks or
• return for short spells or as day patients
  within a longer period of time

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E-learning in Hospitals critical points

• Providing tailor-made blended learning to
  hospital patients is rather expensive because of
• High fluctuation of patients and
• Therefore usually small numbers of participants
  at a given point of time
• the need for individualisation and
• Intensive face-to-face contacts
• Different financing models appear possible in
  different contexts
• Sponsoring through patients associations or
  companies
• Public funding
• Funding by hospital in order to increase its
  attractiveness
• Fees paid by patients

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Arguments for e-learning in Hospitals
The idea of e-learning in hospitals is still new
and needs active promotion among stakeholders of
the health system!
Arguments
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Contact

• Holger BIENZLE
• Head EU Departement
• die Berater
• Wipplingerstrasse 32
• A-1010 Vienna
• Tel. [phone]
• Fax [phone]
• e-mail h.bienzle_at_dieberater.com
• www.dieberater.com
• www.ehospital-project.net