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Introduction Remote consultation is of growing in importance and gaining popularity in both primary and secondary healthcare settings. Reduced necessity for a physical presence of the patient within the healthcare setting is of particular benefit in the current COVID-19 era. It is also of benefit to a diverse group of patients, for example: those who are geographically distant from the base hospital, those suffering from mobility issues or chronic illness, those who require chaperoning as well as those with limited access to transport. We have developed guidelines for the use of the medical telecommunications platform, Attend Anywhere, which has been utilised across the English and Scottish National Health Services, as well as with the Australian Health service, and is now available in Health Service Executive (HSE) settings. Herein we describe and recommend a process that we have found helpful, and we propose guidelines on how a Health Care Worker (HCW) might consider approaching a virtual consultation when initiating and safely executing a patient encounter on Attend Anywhere, in a secure and efficient manner. The guidelines were created following review of the literature on previous experience by others with this software, as well as recent guidance published by the Irish Medical Council. A proportion of this guidance is transferable to other platforms. Methods We also undertook a short survey of our patients and physicians in Sligo University Hospital, who used Attend Anywhere over a six-week period to gauge their satisfaction levels with the experience., We estimated distance that our patients would have travelled for their appointment had the traditional face-to-face consultation been carried out. We noted whether we considered the medium appropriate for the patient consultations. Results 53 patients took part and satisfaction was rated from satisfied to very satisfied on a 3-point scale for all stakeholders. In addition, we found that remote consultation, when compared to face-to-face consultation, alleviated an average of 144km of unnecessary travel per appointment. Remote consultation was deemed appropriate in all cases and no rescheduled face-to-face appointments were required due to failure of the consultation due to difficulties encountered. Conclusion The authors recommend the implementation of the described guidance, with suggested Checklist, Information leaflet and Consent form, as a means of ensuring the confidentiality of the consultation and to ensure that processes are adhered to that optimise protection for both the patient and the clinician, while reducing the burden of attendance to the healthcare location.
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COVID-19/epidemiología , Dolor Crónico/diagnóstico , Dolor Crónico/terapia , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Tecnología de Sensores Remotos/métodos , Australia , Humanos , Programas Nacionales de Salud , Manejo del Dolor , Satisfacción del Paciente , Investigación Cualitativa , Telecomunicaciones/organización & administración , Tecnología InalámbricaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has catalyzed the use of mobile technologies to deliver health care. This new medical model has benefited integrative oncology (IO) consultations, where cancer patients are counseled about healthy lifestyle, non-pharmacological approaches for symptom management, and addressing questions around natural products and other integrative modalities. Here we report the feasibility of conducting IO physician consultations via telehealth in 2020 and compare patient characteristics to prior in-person consultations conducted in 2019. METHODS: An integrated EHR-telemedicine platform was used for IO physician consultations. As in the prior in-person visits, patients completed pre-visit patient-reported outcome (PRO) assessments about common cancer symptoms [modified Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale, (ESAS)], Measure Yourself Concerns and Wellbeing (MYCaW), and the PROMIS-10 to assess quality of life (QOL). Patient demographics, clinical characteristics, and PROs for new telehealth consultation in 2020 were compared to new in-person consultations in 2019 using t-tests, chi-squared tests, and -Wilcoxon rank-sum test. RESULTS: We provided telehealth IO consultations to 509 new patients from April 21, 2020, to October 21, 2020, versus 842 new patients in-person during the same period in 2019. Most were female (77 % vs 73%); median age (56 vs 58), and the most frequent cancer type was breast (48% vs 39%). More patients were seeking counseling on herbs and supplements (12.9 vs 6.8%) and lifestyle (diet 22.7 vs 16.9% and exercise 5.2 vs 1.8%) in the 2020 cohort than 2019, respectively. The 2020 telehealth cohort had lower symptom management concerns compared to the 2019 in-person cohort (19.5 vs 33.1%). CONCLUSIONS: Delivering IO consultations using telehealth is feasible and meets patients' needs. Compared to patients seen in-person during 2019, patients having telehealth IO consultations in 2020 reported lower symptom burden and more concerns about lifestyle and herbs and supplements. Additional research is warranted to explore the satisfaction and challenges among patients receiving telehealth IO care.
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COVID-19/epidemiología , Oncología Integrativa/estadística & datos numéricos , Neoplasias/terapia , Relaciones Profesional-Paciente , Telemedicina/organización & administración , Actitud del Personal de Salud , Femenino , Humanos , Persona de Mediana Edad , Satisfacción Personal , Calidad de Vida , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Comunicación por VideoconferenciaRESUMEN
SYNOPSIS: Telehealth is rapidly being implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite evidence for the effectiveness of telehealth for musculoskeletal examination and treatment, there is a lack of clear guidance related to implementation. We provide recommendations on practical concerns related to delivering telehealth, including choice of platform; legal, ethical, and administrative considerations; building a "webside manner"; and implications for musculoskeletal examination and treatment. J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 2021;51(1):8-11. doi:10.2519/jospt.2021.9902.
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COVID-19 , Enfermedades Musculoesqueléticas/diagnóstico , Enfermedades Musculoesqueléticas/terapia , Consulta Remota , COVID-19/epidemiología , Seguridad Computacional , Humanos , Manipulaciones Musculoesqueléticas , Pandemias , Relaciones Médico-Paciente , Consulta Remota/ética , Consulta Remota/legislación & jurisprudencia , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , SARS-CoV-2RESUMEN
Coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has generated a need to rapidly increase online consulting in secondary care, an area in which it has previously been underutilised. We sought to review the guidance on conducting remote consultations and found that while there is a large amount of information about the implementation of remote consultations at an organisation level, there is a paucity of high-quality papers considering the guidelines for online consultations alongside practical advice for their implementation at the individual level. We reviewed guidelines from reputable medical sources and generated practical advice to assist practitioners to perform safe and effective video consultation. Additionally, we noted reports in the literature of a lack of transparency and resulting confusion regarding the choice of telemedicine platforms. We, therefore, sought to summarise key characteristics of a number of major telemedicine platforms. We recognised a lack of clarity regarding the legal status of performing remote consultations, and reviewed advice from medico-legal sources. Finally, we address the sources of these individual uncertainties, and give recommendations on how these might be addressed systematically, so the practitioners are well trained and competent in the use of online consultations, which will inevitably play an increasingly large role in both primary and secondary care settings in the future.
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COVID-19/epidemiología , Pandemias , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Contraindicaciones , Médicos Hospitalarios , Humanos , Programas Nacionales de Salud/organización & administración , Guías de Práctica Clínica como Asunto , Consulta Remota/legislación & jurisprudencia , Consulta Remota/métodos , SARS-CoV-2 , Reino Unido/epidemiologíaRESUMEN
PURPOSE: Demographic change and lack of specialized workforces are challenging. Likewise, home visits by general practitioners (GPs) become rarer. If a nursing home resident develops acute symptoms, nurses are often inclined to call the rescue service. Besides patient-related consequences, this might lead to unnecessary hospitalization and far-reaching health economic costs. Due to legal restrictions of remote treatment in Germany, which were recently loosened, telemedicine is still in the early stages. The aim of this study was to employ a holistic telemedical system for nursing homes which facilitates the connection to a GP and thus avoids unnecessary hospitalizations in the case of ambulatory-sensitive illnesses. MATERIALS AND METHODS: After an inter-professional requirement analysis, the iterative development was started. In addition to an audio-video connection, several point of care measurements were integrated. Finally, first field tests were performed in a nursing home in a rural area in Germany. RESULTS: One nursing home was equipped with telemedical system based on the results of the requirement analysis and tele-medically connected to a GP. Over a period of seven months, 56 routine and emergency teleconsultations took place. Only one of those required a hospital admission. In addition to video telephony, electrocardiography and assessment of vitals such as pulse, blood pressure, oxygen saturation and auscultation of heart and lungs were applied frequently. CONCLUSION: A telemedical system including integrated medical devices was successfully developed and has turned out to be helpful and even necessary for careful and reliable decision-making by the GP. First test results show high acceptance for elderly care. Involved patients, nurses, and the GP itemize various specific benefits, including economic, personal, and altruistic issues. Another issue that the current COVID-19 crisis brought to light is lowering the risk of contagion; GPs can replace their home visits by using telepresence combined with point of care measures.
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Infecciones por Coronavirus , Medicina General/métodos , Casas de Salud , Pandemias , Neumonía Viral , Consulta Remota/métodos , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Anciano , Betacoronavirus , COVID-19 , Infecciones por Coronavirus/prevención & control , Femenino , Alemania , Hospitalización/estadística & datos numéricos , Humanos , Masculino , Pandemias/prevención & control , Neumonía Viral/prevención & control , Consulta Remota/instrumentación , SARS-CoV-2 , Programas Informáticos , Encuestas y CuestionariosAsunto(s)
Betacoronavirus , Infecciones por Coronavirus/prevención & control , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Glaucoma , Pandemias/prevención & control , Neumonía Viral/prevención & control , COVID-19 , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/tendencias , Glaucoma/diagnóstico , Glaucoma/terapia , Humanos , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , SARS-CoV-2 , Reino UnidoAsunto(s)
Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Diabetes Mellitus/terapia , Atención Dirigida al Paciente/organización & administración , Telemedicina/organización & administración , Diabetes Mellitus/sangre , Diabetes Mellitus/diagnóstico , Difusión de Innovaciones , Humanos , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Comunicación por Videoconferencia/organización & administración , Tecnología Inalámbrica/organización & administración , Flujo de TrabajoRESUMEN
INTRODUCTION: Health systems are seeking innovative solutions to improve specialty care access. Electronic consultations (eConsults) allow specialists to provide formal clinical recommendations to primary care providers (PCPs) based on patient chart review, without a face-to-face visit. METHODS: We implemented a nephrology eConsult pilot program within a large, academic primary care practice to facilitate timely communication between nephrologists and PCPs. We used primary care referral data to compare wait times and completion rates between traditional referrals and eConsults. We surveyed PCPs to assess satisfaction with the program. RESULTS: For traditional nephrology referrals placed during the study period (July 2016-March 2017), there was a 51-day median appointment wait time and a 40.9% referral completion rate. For eConsults, there was a median nephrologist response time of one day and a 100% completion rate; 67.5% of eConsults did not require a subsequent face-to-face specialty appointment. For eConsults that were converted to an in-person visit, the median wait time and completion rate were 40 days and 73.1%, respectively. Compared to traditional referrals placed during the study period, eConsults converted to in-person visits were more likely to be completed ( p = 0.001). Survey responses revealed that PCPs were highly satisfied with the program and consider the quick turnaround time as the greatest benefit. DISCUSSION: Our eConsult pilot program reduced nephrology wait times and significantly increased referral completion rates. In large integrated health systems, eConsults have considerable potential to improve access to specialty care, reduce unnecessary appointments, and optimize the patient population being seen by specialists.
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Nefrología/organización & administración , Atención Primaria de Salud/organización & administración , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Citas y Horarios , Accesibilidad a los Servicios de Salud/organización & administración , Accesibilidad a los Servicios de Salud/estadística & datos numéricos , Humanos , Proyectos Piloto , Derivación y Consulta/organización & administración , Derivación y Consulta/estadística & datos numéricos , Encuestas y Cuestionarios , Listas de EsperaRESUMEN
OBJECTIVES: To study clinical and patient reported outcomes for the Virtual Monitoring Clinic (VMC), a remote nurse-led telemonitoring service for monitoring Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) patients treated with disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). METHODS: Patients with stable RA enrolled in the VMC were followed up prospectively. The primary outcomes evaluated at 1-year follow-up were: Disease Activity Score-28 (DAS28), Routine Assessment of Patient Index Data 3 (RAPID3), and patient satisfaction assessed using an 11-point Likert scale. RESULTS: Of the 251 patients enrolled, 186 completed 1-year of follow-up. There was a 2.3% (n = 450) reduction in the annual workload from the rheumatology specialist outpatient clinic as a result of the VMC. Statistically significant improvement was seen in the mean patient satisfaction score (7.70-8.16, P ≤ 0.001), with 61.5% of patients opting for the VMC alternating with rheumatology outpatient clinic visits as their preferred mode of follow-up vis-à-vis standard care. There was a marginal increase in mean DAS28 and RAPID3 scores from 2.56 to 2.78 (P < 0.05) and 5.28 to 6.03 (P < 0.05), respectively. However, given that at 1-year follow-up more than half (72.0% and 63.4% based on DAS28 and RAPID3) of the patients' disease activity had improved or remained stable, and was in remission or low activity (73.1% and 53.2% based on DAS28 and RAPID3), the VMC seemed to maintain a stable RA disease activity for the majority of patients. CONCLUSIONS: The VMC is an effective and well-accepted novel approach for the management of patients with stable RA.
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Atención Ambulatoria/organización & administración , Antirreumáticos/uso terapéutico , Artritis Reumatoide/tratamiento farmacológico , Artritis Reumatoide/enfermería , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Rol de la Enfermera , Personal de Enfermería en Hospital/organización & administración , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Anciano , Antirreumáticos/efectos adversos , Artritis Reumatoide/diagnóstico , Femenino , Humanos , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Visita a Consultorio Médico , Satisfacción del Paciente , Evaluación de Programas y Proyectos de Salud , Estudios Prospectivos , Índice de Severidad de la Enfermedad , Factores de Tiempo , Resultado del Tratamiento , Flujo de TrabajoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: The use of clinical pharmacists in primary care has improved the control of several chronic cardiovascular conditions. However, many private physician practices lack the resources to implement team-based care with pharmacists. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether a centralized, remote, clinical pharmacy service could improve guideline adherence and secondary measures of cardiovascular risk in primary care offices in rural and small communities. METHODS AND RESULTS: This study was a prospective trial in 12 family medicine offices cluster randomized to either the intervention or usual care. The intervention was delivered for 12 months, and subjects had research visits at baseline and 12 months. The primary outcome was adherence to guidelines, and secondary outcomes included changes in key cardiovascular risk factors and preventative health measures. We enrolled 302 subjects. There was no improvement in the Guideline Advantage score from baseline to 12 months in the control group (64.7% versus 63.1%, respectively; P=0.21). There was a statistically significant improvement in the intervention group from 63.3% at baseline to 67.8% at 12 months (P=0.02). The estimated benefit of the intervention was 5.0%±2.4% (95% confidence interval=-0.5% to 10.4%; P=0.07). Several criteria were significantly better for intervention subjects, including appropriate statin therapy (P<0.001), body mass index, screening (P<0.001), and alcohol screening (P<0.001). Only 13.7% of subjects with diabetes mellitus had hemoglobin A1c at goal at baseline, and this increased to 30.8% and 21.0% in the intervention and control group, respectively, at 12 months (P=0.10). CONCLUSIONS: The centralized, remote pharmacist intervention was successfully implemented. The improvements in outcomes were modest, in part because of higher than expected baseline guideline adherence. Future studies of this model should focus on patients with uncontrolled conditions at high risk for cardiovascular events. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT 01983813.
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Enfermedades Cardiovasculares/prevención & control , Servicios Centralizados de Hospital/organización & administración , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Farmacéuticos/organización & administración , Servicio de Farmacia en Hospital/organización & administración , Servicios Preventivos de Salud/organización & administración , Atención Primaria de Salud/organización & administración , Práctica Privada/organización & administración , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Anciano , Enfermedades Cardiovasculares/diagnóstico , Enfermedades Cardiovasculares/epidemiología , Análisis por Conglomerados , Femenino , Adhesión a Directriz/organización & administración , Humanos , Iowa/epidemiología , Masculino , Persona de Mediana Edad , Modelos Organizacionales , Grupo de Atención al Paciente/organización & administración , Guías de Práctica Clínica como Asunto , Pautas de la Práctica en Medicina/organización & administración , Estudios Prospectivos , Medición de Riesgo , Factores de Riesgo , Factores de Tiempo , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Using secured videoconferencing technologies, telemedicine may replace traditional clinic visits, save patients' time and travel, and improve use of limited surgeon and facility resources. We report our initial experience of the remote clinical encounter (RCE) by evaluating vascular surgery patients. METHODS: In this proof-of-concept pilot study, we conducted telemedicine evaluations of vascular patients at a tertiary care institution from October 2015 to August 2016. Patients were offered synchronous virtual visits from a surgical provider in lieu of an in-person visit. We used Skype for Business (Microsoft, Redmond, Wash) over secured networks for patient-provider interaction, clinical data entry in the Epic electronic medical record (Epic Systems Corporation, Verona, Wisc) for documentation, and established satellite facilities with existing vascular laboratories for imaging and laboratory testing. We evaluated feasibility, demographics, encounter type, and satisfaction of the patient through web-based questionnaires. RESULTS: During a 10-month period, 41 women and 14 men with an average age of 57 years (range, 29-79 years) underwent 82 RCEs. There were 43 white (78.1%), 9 black (16.3%), 1 Asian (1.8%), and 2 Middle Eastern (3.6%) patients. Diagnoses included both arterial (aneurysm, carotid, and occlusive disease) and venous (deep venous thrombosis and varicose vein) disease. Among the 82 RCEs, visit types included 15 new patients, 30 postoperative visits, and 37 follow-up visits. Ultrasound imaging was performed in conjunction with the RCE in 74 patients (90.2%). Most patients (57%) had multiple RCEs during the study period. All 55 patients responded to the satisfaction questionnaire; 91% stated that they would highly recommend a virtual physician encounter to a friend or colleague, and all of the respondents found their encounter more convenient than having a traditional office visit. All patients thought that they were able to communicate clearly with the provider, and overall quality responses were overwhelmingly positive. CONCLUSIONS: Secured virtual visits can be conducted using commercially available hardware and software solutions. Synchronous telemedicine with point-of-care ultrasound is effective in evaluating common vascular conditions. Virtual care may be used for management of patients with chronic vascular disease.
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Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Pruebas en el Punto de Atención , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Ultrasonografía , Enfermedades Vasculares/diagnóstico por imagen , Comunicación por Videoconferencia/organización & administración , Adulto , Anciano , Comunicación , Registros Electrónicos de Salud/organización & administración , Estudios de Factibilidad , Femenino , Investigación sobre Servicios de Salud , Humanos , Masculino , Sistemas de Registros Médicos Computarizados/organización & administración , Michigan , Persona de Mediana Edad , Satisfacción del Paciente , Relaciones Médico-Paciente , Proyectos Piloto , Valor Predictivo de las Pruebas , Evaluación de Programas y Proyectos de Salud , Prueba de Estudio Conceptual , Enfermedades Vasculares/cirugía , Flujo de TrabajoRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to report the methodology and 1-year experience of a regional service model of teleconsultation for planning and treatment of complex thoracoabdominal aortic disease (TAAD). METHODS: Complex TAADs without a feasible conventional surgical repair were prospectively evaluated by vascular surgeons of the same public health service (National Health System) located in a huge area of 22,994 km2 with 3.7 million inhabitants and 11 tertiary hospitals. Surgeons evaluated computed tomography scans and clinical details that were placed on a web platform (Google Drive; Google, Mountain View, Calif) and shared by all surgeons. Patients gave informed consent for the teleconsultation. The surgeon who submits a case discusses in detail his or her case and proposes a possible therapeutic strategy. The other surgeons suggest other solutions and options in terms of grafts, techniques, or access to be used. Computed tomography angiography, angiography, and clinical outcomes of cases are then presented at the following telemeetings, and a final agreement of the operative strategy is evaluated. Teleconsultation is performed using a web conference service (WebConference.com; Avaya Inc, Basking Ridge, NJ) every month. An inter-rater agreement statistic was calculated, and the κ value was interpreted according to Altman's criteria for computed tomography angiography measurements. RESULTS: The rate of participation was constant (mean number of surgeons, 11; range, 9-15). Twenty-four complex TAAD cases were discussed for planning and operation during the study period. The interobserver reliability recorded was moderate (κ = 0.41-0.60) to good (κ = 0.61-0.80) for measurements of proximal and distal sealing and very good (κ = 0.81-1) for detection of any target vessel angulation >60 degrees, significant calcification (circumferential), and thrombus presence (>50%). The concordance for planning and therapeutic strategy among all participants was complete in 16 cases. In one case, the consultation was decisive for creating an innovative therapeutic strategy; in the remaining seven cases, the strategy proposed by the patient's surgeon was changed completely after the discussion. Technical success was the same (100%) if concordance in planning was present initially or not. Overall 6-month mortality was 4%, 0% for those patients with initial concordance in planning vs 12% for those without initial concordance (P = .33). Surgery was always performed in a tertiary hospital by local surgeons, and in two cases (8%) external surgeons joined the local surgical team. CONCLUSIONS: Such a regional service of teleconsultation may be of value in standardizing the treatment and derived costs of complex TAADs in a huge region under the same health provider. The shared decision-making strategy may be of medical-legal value as well.
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Aorta Abdominal , Aorta Torácica , Enfermedades de la Aorta , Aortografía/métodos , Angiografía por Tomografía Computarizada , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Derivación y Consulta/organización & administración , Regionalización/organización & administración , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Telerradiología/organización & administración , Aorta Abdominal/diagnóstico por imagen , Aorta Abdominal/cirugía , Aorta Torácica/diagnóstico por imagen , Aorta Torácica/cirugía , Enfermedades de la Aorta/diagnóstico por imagen , Enfermedades de la Aorta/cirugía , Toma de Decisiones Clínicas , Conducta Cooperativa , Estudios de Factibilidad , Humanos , Comunicación Interdisciplinaria , Italia , Variaciones Dependientes del Observador , Valor Predictivo de las Pruebas , Evaluación de Programas y Proyectos de Salud , Estudios Prospectivos , Reproducibilidad de los Resultados , Factores de Tiempo , Resultado del TratamientoAsunto(s)
Aviación , Medicina General/normas , Salud Holística/normas , Rol del Médico , Atención Primaria de Salud/organización & administración , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Servicios de Salud Rural/organización & administración , Australia , Servicios Médicos de Urgencia/organización & administración , Medicina General/economía , Salud Holística/economía , Humanos , Atención Primaria de Salud/economía , Consulta Remota/economía , Servicios de Salud Rural/economíaRESUMEN
The impact of e-consults on total consultative services was evaluated. After implementing infectious diseases e-consults within an electronically integrated healthcare system, consultation volume increased. As compared with face-to-face consultations, e-consults were more often related to antimicrobial guidance and were requested by off-site providers. E-consults increased the breadth and volume of total consults.
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Enfermedades Transmisibles/diagnóstico , Enfermedades Transmisibles/tratamiento farmacológico , Hospitales de Veteranos , Consulta Remota/métodos , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Investigación sobre Servicios de Salud , HumanosRESUMEN
Ophthalmology departments face intensifying pressure to expedite sight-saving treatments and reduce the global burden of disease. The use of electronic communication systems, digital imaging, and redesigned service care models is imperative for addressing such demands. The recently developed Scottish Eyecare Integration Project involves an electronic referral system from community optometry to the hospital ophthalmology department using National Health Service (NHS) email with digital ophthalmic images attached, via a virtual private network connection. The benefits over the previous system include reduced waiting times, improved triage, e-diagnosis in 20% without the need for hospital attendance, and rapid electronic feedback to referrers. We draw on the experience of the Scottish Eyecare Integration Project and discuss the global applications of this and other advances in teleophthalmology. We focus particularly on the implications for management and screening of chronic disease, such as glaucoma and diabetic eye disease, and ophthalmic disease, such as retinopathy of prematurity where diagnosis is almost entirely and critically dependent on fundus appearance. Currently in Scotland, approximately 75% of all referrals are electronic from community to hospital. The Scottish Eyecare Integration Project is globally the first of its kind and unique in a national health service. Such speedy, safe, and efficient models of communication are geographically sensitive to service provision, especially in remote and rural regions. Along with advances in teleophthalmology, such systems promote the earlier detection of sight-threatening disease and safe follow-up of non-sight-threatening disease in the community.
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Registros Electrónicos de Salud , Oftalmopatías/diagnóstico , Oftalmología/organización & administración , Derivación y Consulta/organización & administración , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Accesibilidad a los Servicios de Salud/organización & administración , Humanos , Procesamiento de Imagen Asistido por Computador/métodos , Tamizaje Masivo/organización & administración , Optometría/organización & administración , EscociaRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Increasing numbers of emergency calls, shortages of Emergency Medical Service (EMS), physicians, prolonged emergency response times and regionally different quality of treatment by EMS physicians require improvement of this system. Telemedical solutions have been shown to be beneficial in different emergency projects, focused on specific disease patterns. Our previous pilot studies have shown that the implementation of a holistic prehospital EMS teleconsultation system, between paramedics and experienced tele-EMS physicians, is safe and feasible in different emergency situations. We aim to extend the clinical indications for this teleconsultation system. We hypothesize that the use of a tele-EMS physician is noninferior regarding the occurrence of system-induced patient adverse events and superior regarding secondary outcome parameters, such as the quality of guideline-conforming treatment and documentation, when compared to conventional EMS-physician treatment. METHODS/DESIGN: Three thousand and ten patients will be included in this single-center, open-label, randomized controlled, noninferiority trial with two parallel arms. According to the inclusion criteria, all emergency cases involving adult patients who require EMS-physician treatment, excluding life-threatening cases, will be randomly assigned by the EMS dispatching center into two groups. One thousand five hundred and five patients in the control group will be treated by a conventional EMS physician on scene, and 1505 patients in the intervention group will be treated by paramedics who are concurrently instructed by the tele-EMS physicians at the teleconsultation center. The primary outcome measure will include the rate of treatment-specific adverse events in relation to the kind of EMS physician used. The secondary outcome measures will record the specific treatment-associated quality indicators. DISCUSSION: The evidence underlines the better quality of service using telemedicine networks between medical personnel and medical experts in prehospital emergency care, as well as in other medical areas. The worldwide unique EMS teleconsultation system in Aachen has been optimized and evaluated in pilot studies and subsequently integrated into routine use for a broad spectrum of indications. It has enabled prompt, safe and efficient patient treatment with optimized use of the "resource" EMS physician. There is, however, a lack of evidence as to whether the advantages of the teleconsultation system can be replicated in wider-ranging EMS-physician indications (excluding life-threatening emergency calls). TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov, identifier: NCT02617875 . Registered on 24 November 2015.
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Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Servicios Médicos de Urgencia/organización & administración , Auxiliares de Urgencia , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/normas , Servicios Médicos de Urgencia/normas , Auxiliares de Urgencia/normas , Alemania , Humanos , Comunicación Interdisciplinaria , Grupo de Atención al Paciente/organización & administración , Estudios Prospectivos , Mejoramiento de la Calidad , Indicadores de Calidad de la Atención de Salud , Consulta Remota/normas , Proyectos de Investigación , Factores de Tiempo , Tiempo de Tratamiento/organización & administración , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: In-ambulance telemedicine is a recently developed and a promising approach to improve emergency care. We implemented the first ever 24/7 in-ambulance telemedicine service for acute stroke. We report on our experiences with the development and pilot testing of the Prehospital Stroke Study at the Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel (PreSSUB) to facilitate a wider spread of the knowledge regarding this technique. METHODS: Successful execution of the project involved the development and validation of a novel stroke scale, design and creation of specific hardware and software solutions, execution of field tests for mobile internet connectivity, design of new care processes and information flows, recurrent training of all professional caregivers involved in acute stroke management, extensive testing on healthy volunteers, organisation of a 24/7 teleconsultation service by trained stroke experts and 24/7 technical support, and resolution of several legal issues. RESULTS: In all, it took 41 months of research and development to confirm the safety, technical feasibility, reliability, and user acceptance of the PreSSUB approach. Stroke-specific key information can be collected safely and reliably before and during ambulance transportation and can adequately be communicated with the inhospital team awaiting the patient. CONCLUSION: This paper portrays the key steps required and the lessons learned for successful implementation of a 24/7 expert telemedicine service supporting patients with acute stroke during ambulance transportation to the hospital.
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Ambulancias/organización & administración , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/organización & administración , Diagnóstico por Computador , Accesibilidad a los Servicios de Salud/organización & administración , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Accidente Cerebrovascular/terapia , Terapia Asistida por Computador/organización & administración , Ambulancias/normas , Bélgica , Benchmarking , Vías Clínicas/organización & administración , Prestación Integrada de Atención de Salud/normas , Diagnóstico por Computador/normas , Accesibilidad a los Servicios de Salud/normas , Humanos , Modelos Organizacionales , Seguridad del Paciente , Proyectos Piloto , Evaluación de Programas y Proyectos de Salud , Consulta Remota/normas , Accidente Cerebrovascular/diagnóstico , Terapia Asistida por Computador/normas , Factores de Tiempo , Resultado del TratamientoRESUMEN
Telemedicine always was at the edge in adapting newest information and communication technologies. Since medicine occurred, telemedica/ activity was undertaken with the aim to overcome a distance. Telemedicine is defined as an interaction between one or several health professionals, within the context of a medical process, but at a distance, without direct physical contact. Classical fields of telemedicine or Teleradiology, Telepathology, are mainly related to medical specialties and hospital centres,in Switzerland as well. In parallel, Swiss Telemedicine did undertake a specific evolution, by developing sophisticated telemedical consultation centres focused on primary health and with highly trained multiprofessional staff They contribute to the development of decentralized and population based integrated health and care services. In turn, this enables development of new interprofessional health professionals' roles and activities. As progression of patient-citizens' mobility and spreading out of mobile devices take place simultaneously, this opens the opportunity to overcome structural change of the Swiss healthcare system by creating new and innovative healthcare services.
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Consulta Remota/organización & administración , Telemedicina/organización & administración , Teléfono Celular , Conducta Cooperativa , Servicios Médicos de Urgencia/organización & administración , Accesibilidad a los Servicios de Salud/organización & administración , Servicios de Atención de Salud a Domicilio/organización & administración , Humanos , Comunicación Interdisciplinaria , Autocuidado , Suiza , Teleenfermería/organización & administración , Telerradiología/organización & administraciónRESUMEN
OBJECTIVE: Occupational and environmental medicine (OEM) physician specialty practices continue to grow in scope and intensity across the Veterans Health Administration. This study characterizes the implementation of a novel, nationwide telemedicine program that provides OEM specialty consultation to providers across the Veterans Health Administration. METHODS: We examined provider requests and specialist responses for a 6-month pilot from May to October 2013. Characteristics of consult users, determinants of case complexity, and specific applications of OEM specialty expertise were identified. RESULTS: Over a 6-month period, employee occupational health providers consulted the OEM telemedicine pilot a total of 65 times. Employee occupational health providers without formal training repeatedly identified complex cases related to work and disability. CONCLUSIONS: The program has created a new system management solution to deliver expert, in-depth consultation and real-time provider education in OEM.
Asunto(s)
Medicina Ambiental/organización & administración , Relaciones Interprofesionales , Medicina del Trabajo/organización & administración , Derivación y Consulta/estadística & datos numéricos , Consulta Remota/organización & administración , United States Department of Veterans Affairs , Humanos , Salud Laboral , Desarrollo de Programa , Estados Unidos , Evaluación de Capacidad de TrabajoRESUMEN
BACKGROUND: In 2000, Manitoba began utilizing telehealth services for the assessment, diagnosis and follow-up of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). Since that time, the use of telehealth in Manitoba has expanded to the delivery of education and support to families caring for children with FASD in rural and remote areas of the province. The purpose of this study was to expand on a previous evaluation through a focus on the participant experience. Our objectives were thus to explore the experience of families with the telehealth process and to examine the use of telehealth in diagnostic assessment as well as follow-up post-clinical assessment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Sixteen semistructured interviews were conducted with families who had participated in at least one diagnostic assessment and/or individual or group follow-up via telehealth offered through the Manitoba FASD Centre. RESULTS: The majority of participants reported being happy with their experience(s) using telehealth for assessment, diagnosis, and/or follow-up support. Two general themes emerged from the data. The first theme is focused on the value of telehealth use for families with children living with FASD, whereas the second theme presents various needs of this client group. CONCLUSIONS: This study provides support for the use of telehealth as an effective technology beyond diagnosis for individuals with FASD and their families. Families support the utilization of this technology and, despite its minor shortcomings, appreciate the flexibility of telehealth, which allows them to remain in their home communities, connected to their families and support systems.