to share many of the innovative uses of technology that have allowed our team to effectively deliver telehealth lectures across North Carolina .
25 ) Setting the Stage for Telehealth
Laura Rivela , LCSW-R , BCD and Brendan Guldi East End Mental Health
Setting the stage for an effective implementation of telepsych services is much more than camera , lights , action ! It requires the appropriate training of staff who will be delivering the services , as well as training for the support staff who will be coordinating the services . Patients need to receive educational materials to explain the service and the potential benefits . Conducting a pilot study of the various telepsych providers and application of their products helps for an effective and efficient implementation . Promotion of telepsych using marketing and social media will also be addressed .
26 ) Availability and Growth of Commercial United States Telemedicine Services
Nicholas Rolig , MPH , Gail Barker , PhD , Mike Holcomb , Karen A . Rogge-Miller , Nancy Rowe , Ronald S . Weinstein , MD
University of Arizona
Background : In 2014 the Arizona Telemedicine Program ( ATP ), Southwest Telehealth Resource Center ( SWTRC ), and Four Corners Telehealth Consortium hosted the first Telemedicine Telehealth Service Provider Summit ( SPS ). One of the main goals of the summit was to facilitate networking between commercial telemedicine / telehealth service providers and potential customers . Since 2014 , two more SPSs have taken place , one in 2016 and another in 2017 . To foster networking beyond the conferences , the SWTRC and ATP created the Service Provider Directory ( SPD ). Using a 33-item questionnaire , the SPD is updated annually . Leveraging access to the SPD ’ s underlying database , this research aimed to determine availability of tele- and ancillary services , and investigate how telemedicine has progressed over time .
Methods : The database was sampled on 10 / 11 / 2017 and 06 / 04 / 2018 . Data were geographically associated and aggregated with each state based on the reported service footprint of each company . Services available within each state were determined by replacing the list of companies per state with their respective services and removing duplicates . Growth was analyzed based on comparing the results of both geographic analyses , graphing the year each company was incorporated and plotting case volume over time .
Results : All 69 tele-services and 8 ancillary commercial services are currently available in each state . The telehealth industry is still growing , with respect to the number of companies currently operating within each state and the number of cases seen per year . However , some evidence may suggest that consolidation is occurring .
Conclusions : Collectively , these data support that tele- and ancillary services are ubiquitously offered throughout the United States , and the telehealth industry has grown sharply within the past five years . Limitations of this study include the exclusive usage of the SPD as a source of data , which does not include information such as service usage details . Future research will address these shortfalls .
27 ) Collaborative Medical Dental Telehealth Oral Health Assessments Utilizing an Intra-Oral Camera
Elaine Mamola , RDHAP Smiles by Delivery and Housecall Dentistry
Background : “ Oral health is essential to general health and quality of life .” – WHO . Older adults with poorest oral health include the disabled , homebound , or institutionalized ( nursing homes ). The Federal Medicare program does not cover routine dental care . Oral health problems in older adults over the age of 65 years , including untreated dental decay [ 1 in 5 ], periodontal disease [ 2 in 3 ], edentulous [ 1 in 5 ], oral cancer 62 years median age , and dry mouth ( xerostomia ) due to chronic disease and medications , affect 25 % of the U . S . adult population .
Methods : A mobile housecall dental program in collaboration with a mobile physicians group utilizing telehealth developed a pilot to perform oral health assessments on older adults . The dental providers trained the medical providers to utilize an intra-oral camera as an oral health assessment tool . Standard Intra-oral photos were taken , then forwarded to the dental provider . The medical providers were asked to not use the camera for the first 30 days . A comparison was then made to determine if the use of an intra-oral camera aided the mobile medical group in determining oral health assessments and telehealth referrals . Ultimately , the goal of the collaboration was to improve the number of older adults receiving oral health assessments , thereby reducing the number of urgent dental needs in the older adult population due to early detection of oral conditions by the medical providers .
Results : The mobile medical providers reported increased number of oral health conditions identified , and improved confidence in referring older adult patients to dental providers when utilizing the intra-oral camera and telehealth referrals .
Conclusions : Improved early detection of oral conditions were noted . Final data will be available for poster presentation .
48 | Telemedicine Telehealth Service Provider Summit