Delivering Urgent Care Using Telemedicine: Insights from Experienced Clinicians at Academic Medical Centers

Abstract

Abstract Background Care delivered using telemedicine has been steadily growing in the USA but represented a small fraction of overall visits before the COVID-19 pandemic as few clinicians had been providing care using telemedicine. Understanding how experienced clinicians have practiced telemedicine can help guide today’s exponential adoption of telemedicine. Objective The objective of this study was to explore barriers and facilitators to providing effective, high-quality urgent care using telemedicine (“tele-urgent care”) from the perspective of clinicians experienced in telemedicine. Approach We conducted semi-structured interviews between July 2018 and March 2019 of clinicians who had been providing tele-urgent care services to patients as a part of their routine clinical practice. Themes were identified using content analysis with a constant comparative coding approach. Key Results Among the 20 clinicians interviewed, the majority were female (90%) and nurse practitioners (65%). We identified four themes related to barriers and facilitators to providing effective, high-quality tele-urgent care. Workplace factors such as a strong information technology (IT) infrastructure, real-time IT support, an electronic health record, and a collegial work environment, often virtual, were necessary standards. Communication and exam techniques from in-person encounters were adapted to tele-urgent care including active listening skills and teaching patients to conduct specific exam maneuvers virtually. The convenience of tele-urgent care should be preserved to support improvements in access to care. Finally, patients and clinicians occasionally had mismatched expectations about what could or would be provided during a tele-urgent care encounter. Managing the added tension that can occur during a telemedicine encounter was important. Conclusion As telemedicine becomes an integral part of the care continuum, incorporating and accounting for these key insights when we train and support clinicians will be necessary to provide effective, high-quality care to patients in the future.