Teletherapy Tutorial
Hi guys! As many schools and providers are making the shift to teletherapy due to the COVID-19 closures, SLP Holly Rosensweig (of Spiffy Speech) and I wanted to share a quick tutorial for the online platform Doxy.me. Doxy.me $35/month for the professional version and is HIPAA compliant. It is a great way to provide services while maintaining social distancing! If you have any further questions, feel free to leave a comment below!
Basics of Doxy.me
Doxy.me is a HIPAA compliant teletherapy website that enables video calls between health professionals, such as speech-language pathologists, and their students. The Professional version used to have a free one-month trial, but they have recently gotten rid of the trial and are now charging $35/month. You are going to want to upgrade to the Professional version in order to use screen sharing, (i.e., in order to show PDF files, websites, iPad apps, etc. to your student during the video call).
While you can use Doxy.me on an iPad or cell phone, using a laptop or desktop computer will allow you to use the screen sharing feature, which is really a necessity for getting the most out of your therapy sessions and being able to use a variety of activities. Your student will be able to see what’s on your screen, regardless of which device they are using; however, it is recommended that they use a laptop, desktop computer or iPad (as opposed to a cell phone) so that they will have a larger screen size for viewing your documents/resources.
Creating an Account
You will first need to create an account by clicking “Sign up for free” and then “I’m a Provider.”
When filling out your information, make sure your Room Name is easy to remember and professional (ex: your name, the first part of your professional E-mail address, or your private practice name). In order to video chat with you, your clients are going to be using the site doxy.me/RoomName. For example, if you choose the Room Name, SarahSLP29, all of your students will be joining your video call by going to the web address www.doxy.me/SarahSLP29
Upgrading to Pro Version (Free One-Month Trial)
Once you have completed this sign up process and are logged in, you are going to need to upgrade to the Professional version in order to use Screen Sharing to share documents/websites/etc. with your student.
Go to the black column on the left side of your screen and click Upgrade. Go to the column that says Professional in the center of the screen, scroll down, and click Enable Free Trial. You will be prompted to enter your credit card number. Your card will not be billed until your one-month trial has expired so it is a good idea to set a cell phone reminder or make a note, reminding yourself to cancel before the trial period is over. If you don’t cancel within the one-month period, your credit card will be billed $35/month to continue your Professional membership.
Obtaining BAA to Ensure HIPAA Compliance
In order for a teletherapy website or app to be considered HIPAA complaint, the web company needs to enter into an agreement with the provider called a Business Associate Agreement, or BAA. This basically means that the company is agreeing to follow HIPAA guidelines to protect your student or client’s data. Before your first teletherapy session, click Account Settings (in the black menu column to the left) and click BAA at the top. You can then enter your information to request a BAA from Doxy.me. Once you have filled everything out, you can click to view and download a copy of the BAA.
Using Doxy.me for Teletherapy
Before starting the video call, you might want to have any documents already open on your computer such as Teachers Pay Teachers resources. If you are planning to use iPad apps during the session, you will want to have your iPad within reach too.
Make sure that you have the cell phone number of a parent or caregiver in case anything goes wrong during the call. For younger students or those who might have difficulty staying on task, you can arrange to have a caregiver present during the entire call to redirect and help out with activities.
Go to the website www.doxy.me and log into your account. Again, it is recommended that you do this on a laptop or desktop computer as opposed to a phone or iPad.
Send your student the link www.doxy.me/RoomName as described above (ex: www.doxy.me/SarahSLP29). You can send this link via text message, E-mail, or tell it to them verbally without actually sending an “invite” from Doxy.me (though the website provides an invite option as well).
Patient Queue
When your student follows the link you sent, they will first be prompted to enter their name and will then wait for you to start the call. At the top of the column on the left side of your screen, you will see that it says, Patient Queue. If the student has not yet followed your link, beneath Patient Queue it will say, “No one has checked in yet.” If your student has followed the link and is waiting for the call to start, it will say the student’s name and tell you how long they have been waiting as if they are in a virtual waiting room. You can even personalize your waiting room by adding text, pictures, or videos you’re your students will see while waiting! Hover your mouse over the student’s name and click the yellow button that says, Start Call when you are ready to start video chatting.
Teletherapy Sessions
If you and your student have both enabled your cameras and microphones, you should now be able to see and hear each other. It’s a good idea to do a practice run before your first session to make sure your camera and microphone are working and that they don’t require any troubleshooting. Your camera and microphone will not work if they are being used by another app, such as if you already have Skype or Zoom open on your computer, so make sure you have closed out of any other video applications.
Group Video Calls
The Professional and Clinic versions of Doxy.me allow for group calls with up to 10 participants such as if you are conducting a social or articulation group online! To use this feature, invite all participants to your waiting room using the same link with your Room Name as described above. Instead of one patient in the Patient Queue, you should be able to see a list of each student who has joined and how long they have been waiting. Start the video call with one student using the steps in the above section. Once connected to the first student in a regular video call, from the Patient Queue at left, select the next name and click, “Add patient to current call.” Do this for each participant until everyone is audible and visible on your screen. Thank you to our friend, Speech Safari for figuring out how to use this feature and then sharing it with us! 😊
Screen Sharing from a Computer
To share what is on your computer screen with your student, make sure you already have the TPT resource, PDF file, website, video, etc. that you want to use open on your computer. The file or website can be minimized at the bottom of your screen and does not need to actually be open/visible in front of the Doxy.me call screen (i.e., where you can see your student via video).
On the black column to the left, click Screenshare and then “Share my screen.” You can then select if you want your student to see your entire computer screen or just an Application Window (meaning they would only see one program of your choice like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Acrobat Reader, Paint, etc.) This is recommended so that your student can’t see everything that is open on your computer (including the Doxy.me video website). Under Application Window, you will see any applications that you currently have open and can click on the one that you want your student to see. If you do not see the application you want to use (such as a PDF file), open it on your computer and it should then appear in Application Window. As a third Screenshare option, you can select to share Chrome Tab if you only want your student to see a website that you have open in Chrome. After making a selection of what to share with your student, click Share. Your student will see whatever is in that window, including when you zoom in on something, circle something with a pen, draw an arrow pointing to something, etc. Your student should still be able to see a small video of you and of themselves at the top right of their screen even while looking at the document or website you are sharing with them.
To stop sharing and go back to the regular video, click “Stop sharing” at the bottom of your screen. To share something else with your student, click Screenshare again from the black column at left.
Screen Sharing from your iPad/iPhone
To share whatever is on your iPad or iPhone with your student (including documents, apps, videos), you will need to download an application to your computer that allows you to use a Screen Mirroring feature. Screen Mirroring is when the picture from your iPad is broadcast onto another device such as your computer screen or a TV screen.
There are many options out there, but the computer application, LonelyScreen, was able to successfully link an iPad screen with a PC laptop. It also has a free trial and does not require a credit card to start the trial. Once the trial period ends, should you choose to purchase it, LonelyScreen only costs $14.95/year for personal use or $29.95/year for business use.
LonelyScreen is available for both PCs and for Macs, but our friend, Speech Safari shared with us that using her Mac, the mirroring feature made her iPad picture appear blurry. If Screen Mirroring from an iPad/iPhone to a Mac, it is recommended that you first try X-Mirage instead of LonelyScreen or other mirroring program! X-Mirage has a free trial and after the trial period costs $16.00 total (not a yearly charge).
First download LonelyScreen (or other screen mirroring app such as X-Mirage if using a Mac) onto the computer where you will be using Doxy.me for teletherapy. Once installed, make sure the computer and your iPad are both connected to the same wireless internet connection. Open LonelyScreen (or X-Mirage) and you should see a window that says LonelyScreen (or X-Mirage) in the center of your computer screen.
On your iPad or iPhone (newer models), swipe your finger down from the top right corner of the screen, which should bring up a menu that says Screen Mirroring. On older iPads/iPhones (iPhone 8 or earlier, iOS 11 or earlier), you may need to swipe up from the bottom of your screen instead of the top right to bring up the Screen Mirroring menu.
Next, touch Screen Mirroring and you should see LonelyScreen (or X-Mirage) as an option. Touch LonelyScreen (or X-Mirage) and a check will appear to the right if connected. Press the home button on your iPad. You should now see a smaller version of your iPad screen in the center of your computer screen where the black square was before. You will now be able to view your iPad screen on your computer but your student will not be able to see your iPad yet.
To share your iPad screen with your student in Doxy.me, again click Screenshare from the black column on the left. Click Application Window and click LonelyScreen Airplay. Click Share at the bottom right.
Your student should now see whatever is on your iPad including apps, videos, websites, and documents. They should also see if you use the pen feature to write on your screen such as when viewing a PDF file or if you zoom in on a certain portion of the screen.
If you plan to use iPad apps during your teletherapy session, you may want to pre-load any TpT resources, PDF files, etc. onto your iPad so that you only need to share LonelyScreen with the client and not switch back and forth between sharing computer documents and sharing iPad apps. In other words, if everything you need for teletherapy is on your iPad, you only need to use LonelyScreen for iPad screen mirroring instead of sharing application from your computer. Another advantage of this is that you can still see the video of your student on your computer while controlling apps or documents on your iPad. This is especially helpful for articulation therapy since you will want to be able to see your student while they are viewing an app like Articulation Station or other artic activity.
PDFs that are downloaded from TpT onto your iPad can sometimes be hard to find. I believe by default they are saved under the picture of the file folder, then iCloud Drive, and then Downloads. For a simpler way to access all of your teletherapy files, download the free Dropbox app onto your iPad (or use another file-sharing platform such as iCloud or Google Drive). Then using your phone or computer, upload all of your teletherapy files from your phone or computer to Dropbox.
If you want to be able to easily access PDF files and write or draw on them while viewing with your student, it is recommended that you download a FREE PDF annotation app such as PDFelement onto your iPad/iPhone. Once installed, you will need to link the app to the file-sharing platform of your choice (ex: Dropbox) so that all of your files will appear within the app. Once you open a file in PDFelement, you should be able to use all kinds of features such as adding checks and x’s, drawing/writing, highlighting, and adding in small sticky notes. Since you can customize “stamps” by importing images and then move them around, you should be able to use them as movers in PDFelement in order to play teletherapy board games.
Note: When using Screenshare, your student will be able to see YOU drawing or writing on documents but they will not be able to draw or click on anything themselves. There IS a feature that allows you to see whatever is on your student’s screen, but I believe this will only work if your student is using a computer or a supported browser to video chat (so this may not work if they are using an iPhone/iPad). To use this feature, click Screenshare and then Request [Student’s] Screen. The student/caregiver will then need to click “Share my screen” when prompted.
We hope that you have found this tutorial helpful! Click here for a list of digital resources that can be used during your teletherapy sessions! If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave a comment below. Stay safe, stay healthy, and keep up the amazing work you are doing to support your clients!