Essentials for Effective Virtual Rounding

??????? SUMMARY

• Virtual Rounding has applicability to support inpatient and outpatient models of care.
• Virtual Rounds supports teams in EHR documentation, tracking tasks, supporting frontline clinicians and staff, helping to prevent burn out and serving as subject matter experts.
• 4 Primary challenges along with essential solutions are known for Virtual Round process improvement.

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BACKGROUND

• ?The primary goal of virtual rounds is to support frontline clinical staff and ensure high quality care.
• Care is provided to high need patients including inpatient (ward, ED, ICU) and outpatient settings.
• Virtual Rounds can provide:

o?? Direct virtual care delivery in emergent/urgent settings as well as ensuring the patient daily care plan is completed.

o?? As needed (On Demand) clinical coverage.

o?? Meeting discharge needs

o?? Specialty consultations

·??????? Non-Rounding tasks include:

o?? EHR documentation

o?? Tasks to be accomplished (Things To Do)

o?? Information gathering (Things To Know)

o?? Follow up

o?? Other support of frontline practitioners

o?? Serve as subject matter experts

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4 NECESSARY DOMAINS FOR SUCCESSFUL VIRTUAL ROUNDS REVIEW:?

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?1.????? Administrative:

MAIN PROBLEM: Discordant schedules among Virtual Rounders and Frontline clinical staff

?ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS:?

Identify scheduling staff on Virtual and Frontline teams for regularly scheduled communications.

• Team introductions ahead of time

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2.????? Technical Challenges:

MAIN PROBLEM:? Variable audio/visual tools and quality; equipment maintenance; interoperability; other miscellaneous technical issues.

ESSENTIAL COMPONENTS:

IT support with regular communication

For inpatients pause between patients for team clinical summaries, questions and discussions.

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3.????? ENGAGEMENT FROM FRONTLINE CLINICAL TEAM

MAIN PROBLEMS:

Frontline comfort with Virtual Team skill set

Expectation of tasks

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ESSENTIAL TASKS:

Team introductions ahead of time

Jointly developed workflow expectations between Virtual and Frontline teams

Standardized introductions to providers and patients at beginning of session

Regular and ongoing communication between teams

• Contextual Expectation Setting - Set expectations of duties and tasks

Virtual and Frontline Leadership managers biweekly check-in to build communication and continuity.

?4.????? TRAINING

?MAIN PROBLEMS: Variability of specialties and EHRs by Virtual team

?ESSENTIAL TASKS:

Virtual Rounding expectations

EHR(s) training

Develop training toolkit

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CONCLUSIONS:

• As telemedicine evolves, we are faced with a “new normal”.
• Virtual Rounding can provide a valuable extension for frontline clinicians in the inpatient and outpatient setting.
• The primary goal is always to improve care and ensure completion of each patients care plan along with early identification of potential deterioration.
• Virtual Rounding presents a new set of previously unexperienced challenges.
• By addressing these challenges along with essential approaches to optimization of Virtual Team integration are key to success.

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Erkan Hassan, Pharm.D., FCCM is a transformational healthcare leader with extensive experience developing innovative solutions to improve clinical outcomes, enhance provider experience and increase revenue.?

You can reach Erkan at [email protected]