The power of virtual care

TELEHEALTH CONTINUES TO PROVIDE ACCESS FOR ASCENSION’S MOST VULNERABLE PATIENTS

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated a growing trend in the use of telehealth across the country. In fact, from March 1, 2020, to March 16, 2022, more than 9,700 Ascension clinicians conducted a cumulative total of 3.23 million outpatient virtual visits.

The rapid use of telehealth during this time expedited years of care delivery advancements in a few short months — helping meet the clinical, safety and access needs of our patients. Our varied telehealth interventions allowed us to continue to provide care while mitigating physical — and sometimes psychological — challenges facing many of our most vulnerable patients.

A CASE FOR ACCESS

From October 2020 through March 2021, Ascension Medical Group same-day appointments for established primary care virtual video visits occurred at nearly twice the rate of in-person visits, and that number only continues to grow. On average, the gap between the schedule and appointment date is 65% less for primary care physicians and 17% less for specialists with a video visit vs. an in-person visit. In addition to providing greater

access to care, another plus has been a System-wide reduction in patient no-show rates of over 7%.

According to Baligh Yehia, MD, MPP, FACP, Senior Vice President, Ascension, and President, Ascension Medical Group, accessibility to care is critically important, especially for individuals impacted by health disparities.

“Health disparities across race, age and geography are well documented, and telehealth offers the potential to mitigate those inequities by offering care to underserved communities,” he said. “In response to this need, many of our Ministry Markets have found more opportunities to utilize telehealth.”

An example is the recent establishment of a virtual primary care clinic at a soup kitchen called My Brother’s Keeper (MBK) in a medically underserved area of Baltimore. MBK serves nearly 100 people per day, initially functioning as a community hub providing meals and social services. After collaborating with Catholic Charities to further evaluate community needs, the team at Ascension Saint Agnes, Baltimore, launched a virtual primary care clinic at the site.

“In addition to supporting our Mission, we are ensuring that our virtual care solutions are meeting patients wherever they are,” said Tania Elliott, MD, FAAAAI, FACAAI, Chief Medical Officer, Virtual Care, Clinical & Network Services, Ascension. “We are able to provide patients with a virtual physical exam and the medications they need for acute and chronic care needs.”

A similar virtual care clinic was established last year at Ascension St. Ben’s Clinic in Milwaukee. The clinic provides primary care to patients who may experience multiple barriers, including mistrust in large systems of care, chronic homelessness, and/or challenges related to mental illness or substance abuse. The current program supports both adult rehabilitation and a women and children’s shelter in downtown Milwaukee. There is a plan to add a third virtual clinic in the largest shelter in Milwaukee soon.

WHAT’S ON THE HORIZON?

“As Ascension continues to be on the forefront of the changing telehealth landscape, it will be important for us to look for unique opportunities to serve diverse populations,” Dr. Yehia said. “This includes continuing to work with Ministry Markets on development of additional telehealth programs based on community needs.”

Ascension is also looking at telehealth solutions outside of virtual primary care and urgent care, including the areas of palliative care, virtual nursing and medical assistant utilization, pharmacy and medication management, and digital therapeutics, as well as continuing to expand remote monitoring.

“To be successful, we must continue to develop solutions that make the lives of clinicians, patients and care teams easier, without compromising clinical quality,” Dr. Elliott said. “Keeping these three customer and clinical outcomes in mind, we can optimize clinical care delivery and meet the needs of all of the patients we serve, wherever they are. The bottom line is we want our clinicians, office staff and patients to recognize the value of hybrid care.”

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PAST YEAR INCLUDE:

• Establishment of dedicated Virtual Care Leads (Clinical and Operational) in all Ministry Markets. • Launch of Maternal Hypertension Remote Patient

Monitoring Program in two markets (Indiana and Texas). • Deployment of Ascension Video Chat in partnership with the Ascension Studio. • Monitored more than 10,000 patients in COVID-19 Home

Remote Patient Monitoring Program. • Washington, D.C.: Cared for 80% of behavioral health patients virtually and 100% of geriatric patients in facilities virtually. • Ascension Texas: Within hours of a February 2021 storm hitting Austin, all clinics switched to virtual operations.

This resulted in limited interruptions to clinic visits. While surgeries peaked in the week following the storm, pre-op visits continued virtually. • Ascension Indiana: Integrated a Maternity Model that incorporated virtual visits with in-person visits during the prenatal and postpartum phases of care. • Ascension Florida and Gulf Coast: Opened a 100% virtual primary care practice. • Binghamton, New York: Launched a virtual urgent care practice with plans for a virtual clinic in a homeless shelter.