Making a Traditional Spine Surgery Clinic Telemedicine-Ready in the "New Normal" of Coronavirus Disease 2019.
Asian Spine J
; 15(2): 164-171, 2021 Apr.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1191223
ABSTRACT
STUDY DESIGN:
An original article describing a comprehensive methodology for making a traditional spine surgery clinic telemedicineready in terms of logistical considerations and workflow.PURPOSE:
The aim of this study is to promote the use of telemedicine via videoconferencing to reduce human exposure to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and reduce the risk of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission at outpatient clinics. OVERVIEW OF LITERATURE The COVID-19 pandemic is the biggest healthcare crisis in the 21st century. Until a vaccine is developed or herd immunity against SARS-CoV-2 is achieved, social distancing to avoid crowding is an important strategy to reduce disease transmission and resurgence. Telemedicine has already been applied in the field of orthopedics with encouraging results.METHODS:
We reviewed the evidence behind telemedicine and described our clinical protocol, patient selection criteria, and workflow for telemedicine. We discussed a simple methodology to convert pre-existing traditional clinic resources into telemedicine tools, along with future challenges.RESULTS:
Our methodology was successfully and easily applied in our clinical practice, with a streamlined workflow allowing our spine surgery service to implement telemedicine as a consultation modality in line with the national recommendations of social distancing.CONCLUSIONS:
Telemedicine was well incorporated into our outpatient practice using the above workflow. We believe that the use of telemedicine via videoconferencing can become part of the new normal and a safe strategy for healthcare systems as both a medical and an economic countermeasure against COVID-19.
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Type of study:
Prognostic study
Topics:
Vaccines
Language:
English
Journal:
Asian Spine J
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Asj.2020.0508
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