27 June 2024
This paid post is sponsored by Avera Health.
At Avera, virtual care encompasses many things, from visiting your doctor on your mobile phone to extending specialty care across miles, from virtual nursing to telemedicine.
“Avera was a pioneer in virtual health in our rural service area and our commitment is just as strong today,” said Kris Becker, director of virtual health at Avera. “We continue to look for innovative solutions to provide convenience to our patients and expand the capacity of physicians and caregivers.”
Emily Ihlen, a registered nurse, provides bedside nursing care, while Colleen O’Connor, a registered nurse on-screen, supplements bedside nursing with virtual nursing.
“Virtual care is a solution to several challenges in healthcare, including staff shortages and the rising costs of building new facilities, while maintaining high quality and patient safety,” said Dr. Ronald Place, regional president and CEO of Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center.
Virtual solutions for healthcare challenges
Virtual solutions are being implemented across the healthcare system. A virtual care program takes over some nursing functions virtually, such as documentation and medication review, leaving nurses more time to spend at the bedside with their patients.
“We believe this can really open up new opportunities in both urban and rural areas,” Becker said. “We could send multiple caregivers virtually to patients, such as a pharmacist, a case manager or intake staff. This is an important way to augment our staff at a time of critical staffing shortages.”
Other virtual solutions include:
- A virtual seating program to monitor patients at risk of falls instead of requiring caregivers to spend one-on-one time with patients around the clock.
- Home monitoring programs for patients with certain diseases such as heart failure.
- Remote monitoring for expectant mothers struggling with problems such as high blood pressure or gestational diabetes through the grant-funded Rural Maternity and Obstetrics Management Strategies (ROMS) program.
- Hospital@Home enables selected patients to receive inpatient care at home. While nurses and medical professionals visit patients in person at home, the hospital doctor makes his visit virtually.
Virtual clinic visits
When virtual visits became absolutely necessary during the pandemic, Avera was already in the space and began leveraging existing platforms to expand virtual clinic visits.
Since the pandemic ended, most patient and provider visits have been in person. However, Avera continues to offer virtual visits and expects demand to increase in the future. “It’s interesting that 40 percent of our mental health visits are virtual,” Becker said.
After an initial examination and diagnosis, many follow-up visits are simply conversations between the doctor and patient. “If these can be done virtually, it’s a win for the patient in terms of comfort and convenience,” Place said.
Colleen O’Connor, a registered nurse, provides virtual care services at Avera McKennan Hospital & University Health Center.
Most commonly, virtual clinic visits occur through the AveraChart electronic health record platform. Patients can use the portal from their phone or computer and see their primary care physician from home.
Patients schedule virtual visits by phone with their clinic, just as they would for an in-person visit. Specialist visits can be for areas such as cancer, giving patients flexibility even with complex cancer treatment.
“Patient visits cannot take place over a platform like FaceTime or Zoom. It has to be a platform that is completely secure and complies with patient privacy regulations,” Becker said.
When patients are referred for specialist consultations, these can take place at the local clinic or hospital. Instead of seeing the specialist in person, the patient sees them via interactive video. A local doctor or nurse is also in the room.
Telemedicine
Avera uses telehealth services in its hospitals and long-term care centers. These services provide local teams with additional eyes and ears, as well as consultation in a number of areas, such as the emergency department and intensive care unit.
“These virtual services support care teams and are especially critical in rural areas. Rural teams feel supported by a wealth of experience and expertise when faced with a complex or life-threatening case,” Becker said.
“Avera was built for rural healthcare, but rural healthcare presents challenges due to distance and weather, so as we plan for the future, Avera is thinking virtual first to address those challenges,” said Place.
Learn more about Avera’s commitment to rural healthcare.
