E-Consult Efficiency
Efficiency
Implementation and evaluation of Stanford Health Care store-and-forward teledermatology consultation workflow built within an existing electronic health record system To determine the benefits of integrating e-consult with an EHR, Stanford Medicine conducting a pilot study of a dermatology e-consult system called PhotoCareMD integrated with Epic. Over the course of the pilot, 36 PCPs from 8 clinics that submitted 215 e-consults that resulted in positive experiences for both patients (95% said the service saved them time) and providers (100% said they woudl recommend the system to colleagues). Conclusion: “An internal [store and forward] teledermatology workflow can be effectively implemented to increase access to and quality of dermatologic care.” (Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, October 9, 2018)
Can eConsults Save Medicaid? E-consult has transformed speciality referrals for San Leandro, CA-based Community Health Center Network’s (CHCN) Medicaid patient population. Since the initial pilot in 2015, e-consult has become an essential tool for CHCN providers that makes specialist referrals more accurate, reduces wait times for in-person specialist care and enables efficient patient documentation exchange with specialists. Conclusion: “[E-consults] can help save Medicaid from its complex referral challenge, and…could be an important piece of the puzzle for organizations seeking to repair their broken or fragmented referral processes and create a robust referral ecosystem.” (NEJM Catalyst, August 1, 2018)
Adoption and impact of an eConsult system in a fee-for-service setting