Electronic Consults for Infectious Diseases in a United States Multisite Academic Health System

Area of Science:

• Infectious Diseases
• Health Informatics
• Primary Care Medicine

Background:

• Infectious Disease electronic consultations (eConsults) were introduced in 2018 to support primary care practitioners.
• Managing infectious diseases requires timely and accurate clinical guidance.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the utilization and impact of a new Infectious Disease eConsult service.
• To identify common reasons for eConsults and practitioner information needs.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of 328 eConsults submitted over 15.5 months.
• Categorization of reasons for consultation and types of advice sought.

Main Results:

• The most frequent reasons for eConsults included positive culture or PCR results, syphilis, and latent tuberculosis.
• Practitioners frequently sought advice on antimicrobial selection, clinical assessment, and treatment indications.
• A decrease in internal phone consultations was observed post-eConsult implementation.

Conclusions:

• Infectious Disease eConsults are a valuable tool for primary care, addressing frequent clinical questions.
• The service effectively reduced reliance on traditional phone consultations, potentially improving efficiency.