Is there a difference in the satisfaction levels between professionals who have participated and those who have not participated in the TeleUTIP telemedicine project regarding their engagement in tele-education activities?

Objective The aim of this study is to introduce a distance education program and assess the satisfaction of health professionals. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted in five public hospitals across different regions of Brazil. A total of 171 health professionals participated in a tele-education activity involving discussions of complex cases in a Case-Based Learning (CBL) format. Employee satisfaction was measured using the translated questionnaire Tele-Education Satisfaction Assessment Instrument (IAS-TE). Results The mean satisfaction score for participants was 4.6 on a 5-point Likert-type scale. Participants engaged in the telemedicine project (35.5%) reported significantly higher satisfaction (p<0.001) compared to their non-participating peers (n = 149, 64.5%). The IAS-TE exhibited a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.73, indicating good reliability, and demonstrated good homogeneity (KMO = 0.76, Bartlett’s test of sphericity = p<0.00). Conclusion Participants in the proposed activity expressed high levels of satisfaction. The findings suggest that satisfaction levels are elevated among professionals involved in the telemedicine project. The proposed satisfaction assessment instrument (IAS-TE) exhibits robust psychometric qualities and is suitable for evaluating other distance education activities. Future perspectives involve gaining a deeper understanding of strategies to enhance satisfaction for professionals who do not engage in activities using advanced technology. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Funding Statement The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The data presented was obtained in partnership with the Ministry of Health of Brazil, through the Institutional Development Support Program of the Unified Health System(PROADI-SUS). ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: Research Ethics Committee of Moinhos de Vento Hospital gave ethical approval for this work. I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines, such as any relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material, if applicable. Yes All data produced in the present work are contained in the manuscript.