AHRQ Safety Program for Telemedicine

During a telemedicine appointment, a senior woman reads the label on her prescription medication. The doctor is seen on the patient's laptop. The doctor is discussing the medication's side effects and instructions.

Problem

While telemedicine enhances access, it also raises important patient safety considerations.

The use of telemedicine in health care offers both promises and potential risks. While telemedicine provides many benefits including expanding access to care, its rapid growth means many clinicians never received formal training in using telemedicine effectively to diagnose and treat patients virtually. In the context of infectious syndromes, this can lead to overuse of antibiotics, which contributes to side effects for patients as well as antibiotic resistance. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) sponsored the AHRQ Safety Program for Telemedicine to develop and implement evidence-based guidance to improve antibiotic use in telemedicine care settings.

Solution

Combining evidence-based education with coaching and implementation support to help telemedicine practices improve patient safety.

The AHRQ Safety Program for Telemedicine was implemented in over 500 telemedicine practices across the United States. The program developed evidence-based educational webinars on how to manage and treat patients with potential bacterial and viral infections over telemedicine, including how to conduct the virtual physical exam and how to communicate with patients and families about antibiotic decisions. Practical tools like patient and clinician handouts reinforced participants’ learning and could be used to improve practice guidelines and workflows. The program also provided practices with benchmarking reports and individualized coaching support to help them identify areas for improvement and develop solutions.

Result

A new toolkit to guide telemedicine practices in improving prescribing practices and strengthening patient safety.

The online toolkit will provide practical resources to strengthen antibiotic use in telemedicine settings. It is designed to help telemedicine leaders and clinicians develop effective stewardship programs and foster a culture of continuous improvement, and can be adapted to meet the needs of a wide range of telemedicine practices.