Open AccessA model for the pandemic and beyond: Telemedicine for all outpatient gastroenterology referrals reduces unnecessary clinic visits
Author(s) -
Zhouwen Tang,
Susan G DuBois,
Cristina Soon,
Deepak Agrawal
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
journal of telemedicine and telecare
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.192
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1758-1109
pISSN - 1357-633X
DOI - 10.1177/1357633x20957224
Subject(s) - medicine , telehealth , telemedicine , referral , specialty , pandemic , triage , family medicine , outpatient clinic , medical emergency , covid-19 , disease , health care , infectious disease (medical specialty) , economics , economic growth
The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has forced providers to dramatically scale down in-person clinic visits to enforce social distancing and triage care to the neediest patients. We describe our five-month experience with a hybrid gastroenterology electronic consultation programme starting in 2019 in which we perform electronic consultations for every referral regardless of indication as well as directly initiate telephone-based telehealth visits with patients without the need for in-person clinic. Over five consecutive months, 1243 hybrid electronic consultations were performed with 356 (29%) resulting in a clinic appointment. The remaining 887 (71%) electronic consultations were resolved without need for a clinic visit. Five hundred and fourteen (41%) electronic consultations resulted in a directly scheduled procedure without clinic appointment. Eighty-five per cent of electronic consultations were performed on the same day of referral and 98% of electronic consultations were completed in under 20 min. A hybrid electronic consultation model which pre-emptively reviews all outpatient referrals streamlines access to specialty care. Such a model may be implemented rapidly during the current coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic as well as serve as a platform for long-term improvement in efficiency of care.