Ratliff CR, Shifflett R, Howell A, Kennedy C, et al.
Journal of wound, ostomy, and continence nursing : official publication of The Wound, Ostomy an.... Date of publication 2020 Sep 1;volume 47(5):445-449.
1. J Wound Ostomy Continence Nurs. 2020 Sep/Oct;47(5):445-449. doi:
10.1097/WON.0000000000000692.
Telehealth for Wound Management During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Case Studies.
Ratliff CR(1), Shifflett R, Howell A, Kennedy C.
Author information:
(1)Catherine R. Ratliff, PhD, GNP-BC, CWOCN, CFCN, Division of Vascular and
Endovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, UVA Health, Charlottesville,
Virginia. Robbin Shifflett, RN-BSN, Division of Vascular and Endovascular
Surgery, Department of Surgery, UVA Health, Charlottesville, Virginia. April
Howell, RN-MSN, NE BC, Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, Department
of Surgery, UVA Health, Charlottesville, Virginia. Cindy Kennedy, RN, PCCN,
Division of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, UVA Health,
Charlottesville, Virginia.
BACKGROUND: Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Cardiovascular Surgery (CV)
service of an academic medical center conducted a quality improvement project to
decrease readmissions to the hospital from 2 rehabilitation facilities using
telehealth via video calling. This initiative became of great importance with the
COVID-19 pandemic because it helped the CV service better navigate and more
efficiently meet the patient care needs associated with patient care
restrictions. The CV service had to quickly evaluate and implement measures to
reduce the rate of transmission of the coronavirus, which included adapting the
clinic workflow to comply with state and federal recommendations. To minimize the
interruption of clinical services and the associated revenue, a rapid transition
from outpatient clinic visits to telehealth visits was implemented.
CASES: Two cases reports of patients with wounds managed with 2 different
telehealth platforms are described. Doxy.me platform allows the provider to
e-mail or text a link to their personal waiting room for patients to join the
video call. The second platform is Cisco Jabber platform to connect directly to
the nursing unit at a skilled nursing or rehabilitation facility.
CONCLUSION: Health care systems have had to adjust the manner in which they
triage, evaluate, and care for patients using telehealth platforms that do not
rely on in-person clinic visits during the COVID-19 pandemic. There are multiple
telehealth platforms that require careful planning and treatment implementation.
Each health care agency needs to choose the one or ones that function the best in
their care setting.
DOI: 10.1097/WON.0000000000000692
PMCID: PMC7722288
PMID: 32925589 [Indexed for MEDLINE]
