Implementation of a Pediatric Emergency Telemedicine Program.

Area of Science:

• Pediatric Emergency Medicine
• Telehealth Innovation
• Academic Medical Centers

Background:

• Urban academic medical centers face challenges in pediatric emergency care delivery.
• Telemedicine presents a potential solution to enhance access and efficiency.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the implementation and initial experiences of a pediatric emergency telemedicine program.
• To evaluate the outcomes of three distinct telemedicine services within a pediatric emergency setting.

Main Methods:

• Launched direct-to-consumer virtual urgent care, pediatric emergency department (PED) telemedicine follow-up, and PED telemedicine medical screening.
• Evaluated patient encounters, referral rates, and hospital admission data.

Main Results:

• Direct-to-consumer virtual urgent care: 84 patients, 12% referred to PED, 20% of those admitted.
• PED telemedicine follow-up: 38 patients, 19% referred back to PED, 43% of those admitted.
• Telemedicine medical screening: 3809 patients screened in PED; median encounter duration was 10 minutes.

Conclusions:

• The implemented pediatric emergency telemedicine program is innovative and comprehensive.
• Initial findings indicate short visit times, antibiotic stewardship, and low referral/admission rates.
• Further examination of telemedicine's impact on pediatric emergency care is planned.