Distance learning saves programs time and money
Distance learning saves programs time and money
Improves communication with remote worksites
If the employees can't get to the classroom, why not bring the classroom to them? That's the basic concept behind a new and growing trend in wellness: distance learning.
Distance learning encompasses everything from an audioconference for employees at several difference sites to an interactive session on the Internet. Basically, it derives its name from the separation of the class and the teacher: the provider of the information is somewhere else.
The information can be transmitted via audio only, videotape learning, videoconferencing, audiotape learning with cassettes, or computers. Whatever technique you use, distance learning offers wellness professionals many advantages.
"The major reason distance learning has become more popular is that time away from work is becoming more costly," notes J. Bruce Wilson, MS, president of The FLP Institute, in Mooresville, NC, a distance learning provider. "When you travel, you have to prepare beforehand and catch up afterward. Bringing the learning session direct to the worksite minimizes that lost productivity. Also, there is a much lower cost, and you can include team learning."
Distance learning, says Wilson, makes it easier for wellness professionals to reach employees at remote sites. "You can use distance learning to apply behavior change methods to many sites in shorter, more frequent doses," he notes.
Wellness professionals can also "attend" industry-related seminars through distance learning. "For wellness professionals, it allows them to learn from higher-level speakers more frequently," he observes. For example, speakers recently made available through Wilson's programs include such wellness notables as James Fries, MD, professor of medicine at Stanford University, Wendy Lynch, PhD, noted wellness expert and author, Don R. Powell, PhD, president of the American Institute for Preventive Medicine, and Larry Chapman, MPH, chairman of Summex Corp.
Easy and inexpensive
Most of Wilson's seminars are provided via audioconferencing because, he explains "We want everybody to have access to them, and almost everyone has speaker phones and telephone lines." The typical cost for these 90-minute sessions is $115 per site per session, with the number of employees participating limited only by the size of the room and their ability to hear the speakerphone.
Wilson says he has learned through experience what makes these sessions work. "They must be friendly and interactive," he explains. "Participants learn from each other when you allow them the opportunity to ask questions when they arise." Another key to a successful distance learning event is providing detailed handouts. "Many people are visual, Wilson notes. In addition, participants should be asked regularly during the session if they feel it is heading in the right direction.
Attending an FLP distance learning event convinced Feliciano Jiron that his organization should add new self-care services to its wellness offerings. "I sat in on several sessions, including health benefit cost management and utilization patterns in health care claims," says Jiron, who is information systems manager at La Vida Health Service Organization and PHO is Las Vegas, NM. "The two major issues that really hit home were sources of demand for health care and the types of care available to patients."
In particular, Jiron was fascinated with what he learned about nurse advice lines. "They went into detail about providing different types of self-care publications and nurse referral services," he recalls. "I thought it would be very beneficial for our people; we have a very high volume of diabetics, and self-care would definitely have an impact on the managed care side."
As a result, La Vida is now looking into a nurse advice line and self-care for its members, who are employees at local corporations. "We thought there would be a high liability risk for giving the wrong advice [on the nurse line], but what we've seen from the teleconference is that it is very low," says Jiron. "That really helped push us further in that direction."
He has nothing but praise for distance learning. "I think this fashion of learning is a lot more convenient, and a lot more focused," he says. "You have a designated time period to take in all the information. It's also a lot easier to take a seminar in a more relaxed environment and amid familiar surroundings, rather than going off to a conference, getting jet lag, and then losing your focus during the lecture."
Technology is bringing rapid advances in distance learning, says Wilson. "It will be a race to see which hits the masses more quickly - video or Internet conferencing," he predicts. The more advanced technologies would require employers to own or rent more costly equipment, such as videoconference facilities, Internet connections, audio/video cards on computers, faster modems, or ISDN lines. "But technology is spreading throughout the nation - even to smaller companies," he notes. (For more on the future of distance learning, see the related story, below.)
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