Annals of family medicine
-
Annals of family medicine · Jul 2022
Remote Delivery in Reproductive Health Care: Operation of Direct-to-Patient Teleheath Medication Abortion Services in Diverse Settings.
Established models of reproductive health service delivery were disrupted by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. This study examines rapid innovation of remote abortion service operations across health care settings and describes the use of telehealth consultations with medications delivered directly to patients. ⋯ Rapid innovations implemented in response to disrupted in-person reproductive health care included remote medication abortion services with telehealth assessment/follow-up and mailed medications. Though consistent operational steps were identified across health care settings, variation allowed for adaptation of services to individual sites. Understanding remote abortion service operations may facilitate dissemination of a range of patient-centered reproductive health services.Annals "Online First" article.
-
In the wake of the racial injustices laid bare in 2020, on top of centuries of systemic racism, it is clear we need actionable strategies to fundamentally restructure health care systems to achieve racial/ethnic health equity. This paper outlines the pillars of a health equity framework from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, overlaying a concrete example of telemedicine equity. Telemedicine is a particularly relevant and important topic, given the growing evidence of disparities in uptake by racial/ethnic, linguistic, and socioeconomic groups in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as the new standard of care that telemedicine represents post-pandemic. We present approaches for telemedicine equity across the domains of: (1) strategic priorities of a health care organization, (2) structures and processes to advance equity, (3) strategies to address multiple determinants of health, (4) elimination of institutional racism and oppression, and (5) meaningful partnerships with patients and communities.
-
Annals of family medicine · Jul 2022
Designing and Implementing an Electronic Health Record-Embedded Card Study in Primary Care: Methods and Considerations.
Card studies-short surveys about the circumstances within which patients receive care-are traditionally completed on physical cards. We report on the development of an electronic health record (EHR)-embedded card study intended to decrease logistical challenges inherent to paper-based approaches, including distributing, tracking, and transferring the physical cards, as well as data entry and respondent prompts, while simultaneously decreasing the complexity for participants and facilitating rich analyses by linking to clinical and demographic data found in the EHR. ⋯ Once built, the EHR-embedded card study simplified survey implementation for both the research team and clinic staff, resulting in research-quality data, the ability to link survey responses to relevant EHR data, and a 79% response rate. This detailed accounting of the development and implementation process, including issues encountered and addressed, might guide others in conducting EHR-embedded card studies.
-
Annals of family medicine · Jul 2022
Use of the Electronic Health Record During Clinical Encounters: An Experience Survey.
Use of the electronic health record (EHR) during face-to-face clinical encounters affects communication, and prior research has been inconclusive regarding its effect. This survey study assessed health care practitioner use of EHR-specific communication skills and patient and practitioner experiences and attitudes regarding EHR use during clinical encounters. ⋯ A discrepancy existed in this study between patient and practitioner experiences and attitudes about EHR use, which appeared to negatively affect the experience of health care practitioners but not patients. Organizations should adopt formal strategies to improve practitioner experiences with EHR use.