Rapid Implementation of Telehealth Services in a Pediatric Pulmonary Clinic During COVID-19
| Autor: | Elliot Rabinowitz, Frances Flanagan, Tregony Simoneau, Rachel Gordon, Adam Hammond, Ryan C Perkins, Jaclyn Davis, Gregory S. Sawicki |
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| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
Lung Diseases
Quality management Time Factors Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) education Child Health Services MEDLINE Telehealth Ambulatory Care Facilities 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine 030225 pediatrics Health care Pandemic Ambulatory Care Medicine Humans Child health care economics and organizations business.industry COVID-19 medicine.disease Hospitals Pediatric Quality Improvement Telemedicine Health care delivery Pediatrics Perinatology and Child Health Ambulatory Medical emergency business |
| Zdroj: | Pediatrics. 148(1) |
| ISSN: | 1098-4275 |
| Popis: | OBJECTIVES The coronavirus pandemic created significant, abrupt challenges to the delivery of ambulatory health care. Because tertiary medical centers limited elective in-person services, telehealth was rapidly enacted in settings with minimal previous experience to allow continued access to care. With this quality improvement (QI) initiative, we aimed to achieve a virtual visit volume of at least 75% of our prepandemic volume. We also describe patient and provider experience with telehealth services. METHODS Our QI team identified the primary drivers contributing to low telehealth volume and developed a telehealth scheduling protocol and data tracking system using QI-based strategies. Patients and providers were surveyed on their telehealth experience. RESULTS At the onset of the pandemic, weekly visit volume dropped by 65% (99 weekly visits; historical average of 281). Over the subsequent 3 weeks, using rapid Plan-Do-Study-Act cycles, we achieved our goal volume. In surveys, it was indicated that most participants had never before used telehealth (71% of patients; 82% of providers) yet reported high satisfaction (90% of patients; 81% of providers). Both groups expressed concern over the lack of in-person assessments. Most respondents were interested in future use of telehealth. CONCLUSIONS With a QI-based approach, we successfully maintained access to care via telehealth services for pediatric pulmonary patients during the coronavirus pandemic and found high rates of satisfaction among patients and providers. Telehealth will likely continue to be a part of our health care delivery platform, expanding the reach of our services. Further work is needed to understand the effects on clinical outcomes. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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