Johns Hopkins Telemedicine

Attendees of the Interprofessional Telemedicine Education Symposium held in March — a mix of providers, nurses, researchers and technical experts — heard from clinicians, telemedicine officials and advocates on a variety of topics, from teaching telemedicine in medical schools and improving your “webside” manner with patients to the latest telemedicine billing and coding changes.

CurieDx, a digital-health startup developing a machine-learning algorithm that screens for strep throat based on throat images a patient captures and uploads with their cellphone, won the Hexcite Pitching and Polling event earlier this month.

"Returning to the pre-pandemic days of limiting clinicians to caring only for patients physically located in their state of licensure would dissipate much of the progress that has been made to significantly increase patient access to care." - Bret Allen Mettler, M.D.

A patient believed to have suffered a stroke typically gets transported to the nearest emergency room for tests to determine the best course of action.

Telemedicine at Johns Hopkins Medicine enabled one patient to have her stroke diagnosed and a treatment plan set up without ever stepping foot in a hospital.

Hoping to stem COVID-19, authorities dramatically expanded telemedicine access during the pandemic. But now many emergency rules are ending, and patients and providers worry they’ll lose the benefits of remote care.

Helen K. Hughes, Rebecca Canino, Stephen D. Sisson, and Brian Hasselfeld highlight Johns Hopkins Medicine's new tool that automatically identifies patients likely to need technical assistance during telemedicine appointments. This approach can help make telemedicine more equitable and ease the extraordinary burden that the pandemic has imposed on care providers’ support staffs.

Overnight, many of the emergency pandemic orders ended and several new laws went into effect. Some of the new laws, took the place of the emergency order - allowing for a smooth transition.

One of those was House Bill 123, the Preserve Telehealth Access Act of 2021 to improve access to care through telehealth.

Since the start of the pandemic, Johns Hopkins Medicine has conducted nearly 850,000 telemedicine visits for patients across the country. In a survey of 700 Johns Hopkins Medicine patients, 88% stated they were moderately to extremely likely to use telemedicine after the pandemic.

Since March, Johns Hopkins Medicine has conducted an average of more than 71,000 telehealth visits per month; before the pandemic hit, that number was fewer than 100 per month. Virtual medicine has become a lifeline for millions of patients who would otherwise have delayed or gone without needed care. Our surveys also suggest that both clinicians and patients believe that virtual medicine is effective.

Telemedicine offers flexible options for patients. Read about the Fords who have been able to stay healthy and remain connected with clinicians who have tracked their conditions and adjusted treatments during the COVID-19 pandemic.