Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1293445
120 The wave of telehealth adoption during COVID-19: What happened and what's next? By The American Medical Association T he unprecedented pandemic of COVID-19 has ushered in a new age of telehealth that has not always been present—but a phase that many hope is here to stay. Between 2016 and 2019 alone, tele-visit usage doubled from 14 to 28 percent. e health care industry has seen an upward trend in adopting digital health solutions for im- proved patient care, like tele-visits and remote patient monitoring, even prior to COVID-19. Although the story being written from telehealth usage data is not yet concluded, its past narrative dictates the anecdote of the future. "rough telehealth, we can triage patients and help avoid unnecessary visits to health care settings, thereby reducing exposure to the COVID-19 virus and helping to keep our front lines safe, ensuring they have the resources needed to take on this immense challenge," says Russell Libby, MD, a pediatrician and board member at Physicians Foundation. Supportive resources for telehealth implementation Supportive resources for implementation have migrated into the clinical environment. e first Digital Health Implementation Playbook focused on remote patient monitoring was released in 2018. Its release was on the heels of the 2019 remote patient monitoring (RPM) codes and Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) coverage. Remote patient monitoring guidance was not robust enough; a clear need for implementation was evident, especially once COVID-19 hit. e sec- ond Playbook in the series was in development ahead of COVID-19's emergence and released in April of this year. Accordingly, the AMA be- came a leading resource for physicians, care teams and other industry stakeholders. Industry impact amidst a pandemic Expansion of coverage and liing of geographic restrictions with other policy changes have supported access to telehealth services during the public health emergency. "e tools and guidelines being created now are already helping many to use telehealth and will continue to help define its role at this moment and shape the future of physician practice," says Libby. No one could have predicted the public health emergency and the impact it would have on the health care industry; but with the explosion of tele- health use during the COVID pandemic, doors have opened to collect data to assess its impact on cost savings, access and quality of care. Demand for vendor solutions Vendors have experienced an influx in demand for their solutions pro- viding video visit capability, remote monitoring and other asynchronous ways to connect physicians and patients virtually. With such a significant, rapid increase in demand, it has been challenging for vendors to keep up at times; however, the United States Department of Health and Human Services has relaxed its enforcement of privacy law on telehealth during the public health emergency (PHE), making it easier for many physi- cians to utilize non-traditional telehealth technologies like FaceTime and Skype for video visits and easing burden on vendors. It's unclear which, if any, of the changes made during the COVID pan- demic will remain in place permanently, but as data privacy and security remains a hot topic across the industry, telehealth vendors can likely ex- pect an additional surge at some point if these technologies are no longer able to be used to facilitate video visits. Similar to many other health care technologies, numerous factors exist, driving adoption and scale. Vendors do have the ability to control key areas that are important for end users, including usability, customer ser- vice, interoperability and privacy and security practices. Sustaining the momentum Imagining telehealth before COVID-19 in many aspects will be like try- ing to recall a time before hospitals and clinics. Utilization and outcomes data, and physician and patient experiences will be crucial to showing the long-term value of telehealth. "Looking into the future, it's likely telehealth has a bigger role to play in health care in a post-COVID world. It won't replace in-person care as the norm; however, its expansion, especially within physician practices, will open up the door for increased access and convenience for patients, while maintaining continuity of care and preserving the patient-physician rela- tionship," concludes Barron. Telehealth is no longer a luxury, it's a necessity. n