The University of Mississippi Medical Center’s nationally recognized Center for Telehealth is a key component of the state’s response to COVID-19.
Working directly with C Spire, the Center for Telehealth set up a model COVID-19 response that starts with a telehealth “triage” visit through the C Spire Health app. If the medical professional on your COVID-19 screening believes you need a test for the coronavirus, they set that appointment up while you’re on the call.
“Telehealth is an unsung hero of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Dr. Alan Jones, interim chief telehealth officer, said in a press release. “It is not only enabling triage in our testing area, but it is helping doctors see patients without putting themselves or their patients at risk. Most certainly, telehealth is saving lives.”
In 2017, the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration designated UMMC as one of only two Centers for Excellence in Telehealth, the other being Medical University of South Carolina. As a result, UMMC is not only working on telehealth tools implemented in Mississippi, but is creating best practices and solutions for the entire country.
“We have had the opportunity to present our state’s innovative COVID-19 model to all the telehealth resource centers across the country,” Jones said. “In the next two weeks, HRSA will be showcasing our model on a webinar to all community health centers across the country.”
The Center for Telehealth quickly added 25 staff members to respond to COVID-19, repurposing the C Spire Health app to triage for the virus. (C Spire originally designed the app as a way for customers to visit with medical professionals online to treat minor medical conditions.) As early as March 13, the Center was taking COVID-19 related calls.
UMMC has also turned to telehealth during the pandemic for regular healthcare interactions, in part to shield the medical professionals from the coronavirus. The Center for Telehealth has held over 100 training sessions on the UMMC2YOU app, which in turn has enabled medical professionals to conduct more than 5,500 telehealth visits between March 23 and April 10.
“COVID-19 has exponentially increased UMMC’s telehealth usage for normal visits,” said Greg Hall, director of information technology at the Center for Telehealth. UMMC has added more than 1,359 healthcare providers to the UMMC telehealth platform. Those providers are making “telehealth housecalls” where they handle non-critical cases while the pandemic is at its height.
Telehealth is also cutting down on the consumption of personal protective equipment, or PPE. Patients in isolated care in the emergency department, for instance, can use telehealth technology to communicate with their team of doctors and nurses. Thanks to telehealth technology, those providers use fewer masks and gloves while treating critical patients.
“In this time of crisis, we have seen the capabilities of telehealth technology and how they can be used now, to prevent the spread of COVID-19,” Jones said. “Once the pandemic has ended, it will remain a powerful part of providing care.”
[Photo courtesy UMMC.]
See Innovate Mississippi’s COVID-19 resource center.
