Dataset Information

National Trends in Pediatric Ambulatory Telehealth Utilization and Follow-Up Care.

ABSTRACT: Introduction: As telemedicine becomes standard in pediatrics, further research is required to ensure optimal adoption. This study seeks to characterize visits best suited for telemedicine by analyzing usage trends and encounter attributes associated with immediate in-person follow-up. Methods: Analysis of ambulatory pediatric encounters from the first quarter of 2021 in a nationwide insurance claims database. Results: Telemedicine comprised 9.5% (138,346) of ambulatory encounters. Among telemedicine visits, 7.5% (10,304) yielded in-person follow-up within 3 days. Encounters involving infants and diagnoses of the perinatal period were most frequently followed by in-person visits (11% and 20%, respectively). Mental health visits were least likely to have in-person follow-up. Conclusions: In 2021, telemedicine remained a common modality of care in pediatrics. Varying medical needs still require in-person evaluation, whereas other diagnoses may be conducive to even greater expansion. Insights from this study inform further research into optimization of pediatric telemedicine utilization and development of guidelines.

SUBMITTER: Rabbani N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10024057 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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National Trends in Pediatric Ambulatory Telehealth Utilization and Follow-Up Care.

Rabbani Naveed N Chen Jonathan H JH

Telemedicine journal and e-health : the official journal of the American Telemedicine Association 20220511 1

Introduction: As telemedicine becomes standard in pediatrics, further research is required to ensure optimal adoption. This study seeks to characterize visits best suited for telemedicine by analyzing usage trends and encounter attributes associated with immediate in-person follow-up. Methods: Analysis of ambulatory pediatric encounters from the first quarter of 2021 in a nationwide insurance claims database. Results: Telemedicine comprised 9.5% (138,346 ...[more]

PMID: 35544068

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Project description:ImportanceMore than 1 in 5 children in low-income families report a mental health (MH) problem, yet most face barriers accessing MH services. Integrating MH services into primary care at pediatric practices such as federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) may address these barriers.ObjectiveTo examine the association of a comprehensive MH integration model with health care utilization, psychotropic medication use, and MH follow-up care among Medicaid-enrolled children at FQHCs.Design, setting, and participantsThis retrospective cohort study used Massachusetts claims data from 2014 to 2017 to conduct difference-in-differences (DID) analyses before vs after implementation of a complete FQHC-based MH integration model. The sample included Medicaid-enrolled children aged 3 to 17 years who received primary care at 3 intervention FQHCs or 6 geographically proximal nonintervention FQHCs in Massachusetts. Data were analyzed in July 2022.ExposuresReceipt of care at an FQHC implementing the Transforming and Expanding Access to Mental Health Care in Urban Pediatrics (TEAM UP) model, which began fully integrating MH care into pediatrics in mid-2016.Main outcomes and measuresUtilization outcomes included primary care visits, MH service visits, emergency department (ED) visits, inpatient admissions, and psychotropic medication use. Follow-up visits within 7 days of a MH-related ED visit or hospitalization were also examined.ResultsAmong the 20 170 unique children in the study sample, at baseline (2014), their mean (SD) age was 9.0 (4.1) years, and 4876 (51.2%) were female. In contrast to nonintervention FQHCs, TEAM UP was positively associated with primary care visits with MH diagnoses (DID, 4.35 visits per 1000 patients per quarter; 95% CI, 0.02 to 8.67 visits per 1000 patients per quarter) and MH service use (DID, 54.86 visits per 1000 patients per quarter; 95% CI, 1.29 to 108.43 visits per 1000 patients per quarter) and was negatively associated with rates of psychotropic medication use (DID, -0.4%; 95% CI -0.7% to -0.01%) and polypharmacy (DID, -0.3%; 95% CI, -0.4% to -0.1%). TEAM UP was positively associated with ED visits without MH diagnoses (DID, 9.45 visits per 1000 patients per quarter; 95% CI, 1.06 to 17.84 visits per 1000 patients per quarter), but was not significantly associated with ED visits with MH diagnoses. No statistically significant changes were observed in inpatient admissions, follow-up visits after MH ED visits, or follow-up visits after MH hospitalizations.Conclusions and relevanceThe first 1.5 years of MH integration enhanced access to pediatric MH services while limiting the use of psychotropic medications. Additional implementation time is necessary to determine whether these changes will translate into reductions in avoidable utilization.

Project description:BackgroundTelehealth rapidly expanded since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to understand how telehealth can substitute in-person services by 1) estimating the changes in non-COVID emergency department (ED) visits, hospitalizations, and care costs among US Medicare beneficiaries by visit modality (telehealth vs. in-person) during the COVID-19 pandemic relative to the previous year; 2) comparing the follow-up time and patterns between telehealth and in-person care.MethodsA retrospective and longitudinal study design using US Medicare patients 65 years or older from an Accountable Care Organization (ACO). The study period was April-December 2020, and the baseline period was March 2019 - February 2020. The sample included 16,222 patients, 338,872 patient-month records and 134,375 outpatient encounters. Patients were categorized as non-users, telehealth only, in-person care only and users of both types. Outcomes included the number of unplanned events and costs per month at the patient level; number of days until the next visit and whether the next visit happened within 3-, 7-, 14- and 30-days at the encounter level. All analyses were adjusted for patient characteristics and seasonal trends.ResultsBeneficiaries who used only telehealth or in-person care had comparable baseline health conditions but were healthier than those who used both types of services. During the study period, the telehealth only group had significantly fewer ED visits/hospitalizations and lower Medicare payments than the baseline (ED 13.2, 95% CI [11.6, 14.7] vs. 24.6 per 1,000 patients per month and hospitalization 8.1 [6.7, 9.4] vs. 12.7); the in-person only group had significantly fewer ED visits (21.9 [20.3, 23.5] vs. 26.1) and lower Medicare payments, but not hospitalizations; the both-types group had significantly more hospitalizations (23.0 [21.4, 24.6] vs. 17.8). Telehealth was not significantly different from in-person encounters in number of days until the next visit (33.4 vs. 31.2 days) or the probabilities of 3- and 7-day follow-up visits (9.2 vs. 9.3% and 21.8 vs.23.5%).ConclusionsPatients and providers treated telehealth and in-person visits as substitutes and used either depending on medical needs and availability. Telehealth did not lead to sooner or more follow-up visits than in-person services.

Dataset Information

National Trends in Pediatric Ambulatory Telehealth Utilization and Follow-Up Care.

Publications

National Trends in Pediatric Ambulatory Telehealth Utilization and Follow-Up Care.

Similar Datasets

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