Health and Wellness Informatics News
Innovators from the Miami-based health system explain this issue. To extend care on a broad platform, COVID-19 unlocked new avenues.
Nicklaus Children’s successful telehealth expansion depends on customer input. The HIMSS22 session focuses on individual patient concerns. The health systems turned to telemedicine to meet all the -home needs. It bridged the gap between the two. Stakeholders highlighted the need to optimize access for a broad range of patients.
Dr. Saima Aftab, vice president at Nicklaus Children’s Health System in Miami, stated, “Telehealth has evolved and scaled during the pandemic, and continued work needs to be done to ensure health equity. and to bridge digital divides for future paradigms of care.”
He further added telehealth is a tool to promote access to care and health equity. Telehealth expansion proves a great potential to mitigate healthcare disparities for patients. This is for underserved communities.
The telehealth program has been operational since 2013 at Nicklaus. The entire team worked hard to address individualized patient concerns through varied strategies.
Evelyn Terrell is a director of telehealth and special projects at NCHS. He calls supporting families important. This is important in their success.
Taking steps for improvement and surveying families and patients is necessary. Reviewing feedback and operating via a call center also includes these.
Terrell stated program evaluation and regular review are key indicators. They help in improving healthcare access. The pandemic course ensured convenient access to healthcare to a wide range of patients. HIPAA-compliant telehealth apps delivered healthcare access during COVID-19.
Innovative hybrid models of virtual care introduced during pandemic extended. The system had extended to more than 24 specialties. This is greater than a 9000% increase in virtual visits. This occurred despite a decrement in the nationwide use of telemedicine.
Hence, telemedicine bears the potential to reduce disparities in healthcare. It can lead the world towards health equity. A culture of innovation and transformation can mitigate barriers affecting telehealth.
Rural areas need serious virtual health addressing. This can broaden telehealth expansion and enhance the platform.
