Team Approach: Virtual Care in the Management of Orthopaedic Patients

Telemedicine and remote care administered through technology are among the fastest growing sectors in health care. The utilization and implementation of virtual-care technologies have further been accelerated with the recent COVID-19 pandemic.

Remote, technology-based patient care is not a "one-size-fits-all" solution for all medical and surgical conditions, as each condition presents unique hurdles, and no true consensus exists regarding the efficacy of telemedicine across surgical fields.

When implementing virtual care in orthopaedics, as with standard in-person care, it is important to have a well-defined team structure with a deliberate team selection process. As always, a team with a shared vision for the care they provide as well as a supportive and incentivized environment are integral for the success of the virtual-care mechanism.

Future studies should assess the impact of primarily virtual, integrated, and multidisciplinary team-based approaches and systems of care on patient outcomes, health-care expenditure, and patient satisfaction in the orthopaedic population.