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A telehealth primary care visit more than doubled the well-visit show rate for a cohort of hard-to-reach adolescents, results of a small pilot study show.
Brian P. Jenssen, MD, MSHP, department of pediatrics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, led the pilot study and the project team, which included physicians, researchers, and experts in innovation, quality improvement, and data analytics.
Findings were published online in Annals of Family Medicine.
Keeping adolescents in consistent primary care can be challenging for many reasons. The study authors note, “Only 50% of adolescents have had a health supervision visit in the past year, missing a critical opportunity for clinicians to influence health, development, screening, and counseling.”
Interest high in hard-to-reach group
This study included a particularly hard-to-reach group of 18-year-old patients at an urban primary care clinic who were lost to follow-up and had Medicaid insurance. They had not completed a well visit in more than 2 years and had a history of no-show visits.
Interest in the pilot program was high. The authors write: “We contacted patients (or their caregivers) to gauge interest in a virtual well visit with a goal to fill five telehealth slots in one evening block with one clinician. Due to high patient interest and demand, we expanded to 15 slots over three evenings, filling the slots after contacting just 24 patients.”
Professional organizations have recommended a telehealth/in-person hybrid care model to meet hard-to-reach adolescents “wherever they are,” the authors note, but the concept has not been well studied.
Under the hybrid model, the first visit is through telehealth and in-person follow-up is scheduled as needed.
Navigators contacted patients to remind them of the appointment, and helped activate the patient portal and complete previsit screening questions for depression and other health risks.
Telehealth visits were billed as preventive visits and in-person follow-up visits as no-charge nurse visits, and these payments were supported by Medicaid.
Sharp increase in show rate
In the pilot study, of the 15 patients scheduled for the telehealth visit, 11 connected virtually (73% show rate). Of those, nine needed in-person follow-up, and five completed the follow-up.
Before the intervention, the average well-visit show rate for this patient group was 33%.
Clinicians counseled all the patients about substance use and safe sex. One patient screened positive for depression and was then connected to services. Two patients were started on birth control.
During the in-person follow-up, all patients received vaccinations (influenza, meningococcal, and/or COVID-19) and were screened for sexually transmitted infection. Eight patients completed the satisfaction survey and all said they liked the convenience of the telehealth visit.
Telehealth may reduce barriers for teens
Anthony Cheng, MD, a family medicine physician at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, who was not part of the study, said he found the hybrid model promising.
One reason is that telehealth eliminates the need for transportation to medical appointments, which can be a barrier for adolescents.
Among the top causes of death for young people are mental health issues and addressing those, Dr. Cheng noted, is well-suited to a telehealth visit.
“There’s so much we can do if we can establish a relationship and maintain a relationship with our patients as young adults,” he said. “People do better when they have a regular source of care.”
He added that adolescents also have grown up communicating via screens so it’s often more comfortable for them to communicate with health care providers this way.
Dr. Cheng said adopting such a model may be difficult for providers reluctant to switch from the practice model with which they are most comfortable.
“We prefer to do things we have the most confidence in,” he said. “It does take an investment to train staff and build your own clinical comfort. If that experience wasn’t good over the past 3 years, you may be anxious to get back to your normal way of doing business.”
The authors and Dr. Cheng have no relevant financial relationships to disclose.
A telehealth primary care visit more than doubled the well-visit show rate for a cohort of hard-to-reach adolescents, results of a small pilot study show.
Brian P. Jenssen, MD, MSHP, department of pediatrics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, led the pilot study and the project team, which included physicians, researchers, and experts in innovation, quality improvement, and data analytics.
Findings were published online in Annals of Family Medicine.
Keeping adolescents in consistent primary care can be challenging for many reasons. The study authors note, “Only 50% of adolescents have had a health supervision visit in the past year, missing a critical opportunity for clinicians to influence health, development, screening, and counseling.”
Interest high in hard-to-reach group
This study included a particularly hard-to-reach group of 18-year-old patients at an urban primary care clinic who were lost to follow-up and had Medicaid insurance. They had not completed a well visit in more than 2 years and had a history of no-show visits.
Interest in the pilot program was high. The authors write: “We contacted patients (or their caregivers) to gauge interest in a virtual well visit with a goal to fill five telehealth slots in one evening block with one clinician. Due to high patient interest and demand, we expanded to 15 slots over three evenings, filling the slots after contacting just 24 patients.”
Professional organizations have recommended a telehealth/in-person hybrid care model to meet hard-to-reach adolescents “wherever they are,” the authors note, but the concept has not been well studied.
Under the hybrid model, the first visit is through telehealth and in-person follow-up is scheduled as needed.
Navigators contacted patients to remind them of the appointment, and helped activate the patient portal and complete previsit screening questions for depression and other health risks.
Telehealth visits were billed as preventive visits and in-person follow-up visits as no-charge nurse visits, and these payments were supported by Medicaid.
Sharp increase in show rate
In the pilot study, of the 15 patients scheduled for the telehealth visit, 11 connected virtually (73% show rate). Of those, nine needed in-person follow-up, and five completed the follow-up.
Before the intervention, the average well-visit show rate for this patient group was 33%.
Clinicians counseled all the patients about substance use and safe sex. One patient screened positive for depression and was then connected to services. Two patients were started on birth control.
During the in-person follow-up, all patients received vaccinations (influenza, meningococcal, and/or COVID-19) and were screened for sexually transmitted infection. Eight patients completed the satisfaction survey and all said they liked the convenience of the telehealth visit.
Telehealth may reduce barriers for teens
Anthony Cheng, MD, a family medicine physician at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, who was not part of the study, said he found the hybrid model promising.
One reason is that telehealth eliminates the need for transportation to medical appointments, which can be a barrier for adolescents.
Among the top causes of death for young people are mental health issues and addressing those, Dr. Cheng noted, is well-suited to a telehealth visit.
“There’s so much we can do if we can establish a relationship and maintain a relationship with our patients as young adults,” he said. “People do better when they have a regular source of care.”
He added that adolescents also have grown up communicating via screens so it’s often more comfortable for them to communicate with health care providers this way.
Dr. Cheng said adopting such a model may be difficult for providers reluctant to switch from the practice model with which they are most comfortable.
“We prefer to do things we have the most confidence in,” he said. “It does take an investment to train staff and build your own clinical comfort. If that experience wasn’t good over the past 3 years, you may be anxious to get back to your normal way of doing business.”
The authors and Dr. Cheng have no relevant financial relationships to disclose.
A telehealth primary care visit more than doubled the well-visit show rate for a cohort of hard-to-reach adolescents, results of a small pilot study show.
Brian P. Jenssen, MD, MSHP, department of pediatrics, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, led the pilot study and the project team, which included physicians, researchers, and experts in innovation, quality improvement, and data analytics.
Findings were published online in Annals of Family Medicine.
Keeping adolescents in consistent primary care can be challenging for many reasons. The study authors note, “Only 50% of adolescents have had a health supervision visit in the past year, missing a critical opportunity for clinicians to influence health, development, screening, and counseling.”
Interest high in hard-to-reach group
This study included a particularly hard-to-reach group of 18-year-old patients at an urban primary care clinic who were lost to follow-up and had Medicaid insurance. They had not completed a well visit in more than 2 years and had a history of no-show visits.
Interest in the pilot program was high. The authors write: “We contacted patients (or their caregivers) to gauge interest in a virtual well visit with a goal to fill five telehealth slots in one evening block with one clinician. Due to high patient interest and demand, we expanded to 15 slots over three evenings, filling the slots after contacting just 24 patients.”
Professional organizations have recommended a telehealth/in-person hybrid care model to meet hard-to-reach adolescents “wherever they are,” the authors note, but the concept has not been well studied.
Under the hybrid model, the first visit is through telehealth and in-person follow-up is scheduled as needed.
Navigators contacted patients to remind them of the appointment, and helped activate the patient portal and complete previsit screening questions for depression and other health risks.
Telehealth visits were billed as preventive visits and in-person follow-up visits as no-charge nurse visits, and these payments were supported by Medicaid.
Sharp increase in show rate
In the pilot study, of the 15 patients scheduled for the telehealth visit, 11 connected virtually (73% show rate). Of those, nine needed in-person follow-up, and five completed the follow-up.
Before the intervention, the average well-visit show rate for this patient group was 33%.
Clinicians counseled all the patients about substance use and safe sex. One patient screened positive for depression and was then connected to services. Two patients were started on birth control.
During the in-person follow-up, all patients received vaccinations (influenza, meningococcal, and/or COVID-19) and were screened for sexually transmitted infection. Eight patients completed the satisfaction survey and all said they liked the convenience of the telehealth visit.
Telehealth may reduce barriers for teens
Anthony Cheng, MD, a family medicine physician at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, who was not part of the study, said he found the hybrid model promising.
One reason is that telehealth eliminates the need for transportation to medical appointments, which can be a barrier for adolescents.
Among the top causes of death for young people are mental health issues and addressing those, Dr. Cheng noted, is well-suited to a telehealth visit.
“There’s so much we can do if we can establish a relationship and maintain a relationship with our patients as young adults,” he said. “People do better when they have a regular source of care.”
He added that adolescents also have grown up communicating via screens so it’s often more comfortable for them to communicate with health care providers this way.
Dr. Cheng said adopting such a model may be difficult for providers reluctant to switch from the practice model with which they are most comfortable.
“We prefer to do things we have the most confidence in,” he said. “It does take an investment to train staff and build your own clinical comfort. If that experience wasn’t good over the past 3 years, you may be anxious to get back to your normal way of doing business.”
The authors and Dr. Cheng have no relevant financial relationships to disclose.
FROM ANNALS OF INTERNAL MEDICINE