Abstract 057: Beyond Convenience: Video Visits Can Increase The Efficiency Of Preventive Care Delivery

Abstract

Introduction: In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, medical practices have expanded utilization of telehealth. Little is known about the operational impacts of transitioning from in-person to video visits in specialty clinics. In 2018, the Stanford South Asian Translational Heart Initiative (SSATHI), a preventive cardiology clinic focused on high-risk South Asian adults, introduced CardioClick, a program replacing in-person follow-up visits with video visits. Hypothesis: We hypothesized that implementation of video visits increased the efficiency of clinic operations. Methods: We extracted visit-level data from the EHR for 134 patients enrolled in CardioClick with video follow-up visits from June 14, 2018 to April 21, 2020 and a cohort of 276 patients enrolled in the in-person SSATHI prevention program with follow-up visits from September 11, 2014 to March 6, 2020. Results: Patients in CardioClick and the in-person cohort were similar in terms of age (mean 45 years), gender balance (23 vs 21% female), and cardiometabolic risk profiles. There were 181 video and 637 in-person follow-up visits. Video visits were shorter than in-person visits, both in terms of total clinic time [median 22 min (IQR 16, 29) vs 67 min (48, 100)] and provider time required [median 22 min (IQR 16, 29) vs 30 min (12, 58)]. Video visits were more likely to end on time (71 vs 11%, p<0.001). The median video visit ended on time while the median in-person visit ended 32 min late (13, 70) (see Figure). Providers were also more likely to complete video visit documentation the same day (56 vs 42%, p=0.001). Conclusions: In a preventive cardiology clinic, video follow-up visits required less clinic and provider time than in-person visits, were more likely to end on time, and were associated with increased same-day provider documentation completion. In conclusion, video visits offer benefits beyond their convenience and may increase the operational efficiency of specialty care practices focused on disease prevention, improving value in care delivery.