Telemedicine Change Package

A Pediatric Rheumatologist’s Guide to Getting Better Outcomes from Telemedicine Visits

Access to a pediatric rheumatologist and access to care are major barriers to improving outcomes for youth with rheumatic conditions like Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA). One of the biggest barriers to healthcare delivery is the great distance between many patients pediatric rheumatology healthcare providers. A potential solution of overcoming the barrier of distance is delivering healthcare using telemedicine.

With the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine became widespread across the healthcare industry and has been shown to be acceptable to many patients, resulting in decreased travel times and reduced time away from work/school.

Although the option of virtual visits is an appealing solution to decrease barriers to care, questions remain about the optimal use of telemedicine for patients with JIA, where an in-person physical exam has historically been a cornerstone of assessment of disease activity and medical decision making. 

If you are a provider looking to improve telemedicine practices, please download the PR-COIN Telemedicine Improvement Change Package below. This resource was developed and is being provided to the public thanks to an unrestricted educational grant from Pfizer.

Summary of Resources

Below is a summary of the tools available in the PR-COIN Telemedicine Aid Change Package. Please download the change package at the link above to learn more about and to use these resources and tools within your practice.

For Patients and Parent Advocates

• Video for pre-visit preparation, Appendix A: Telemedicine Preparation Video

• Checklist for pre-visit preparation, Appendix B. Telemedicine Preparation Checklist

• Handout for families, Appendix C: Parent Handout

For Staff

• Appendix D. Staff Telemedicine Visit Checklist

For Providers

• Critical data elements, Appendix E. Critical Data Elements

• EMR templates for new and follow up visits:

  • Appendix F. EMR Template for New Telemedicine

  • Appendix G. EMR Template for Follow-up Telemedicine

• Demonstration Video, Appendix H. V-pGALS Demonstration Video

• Provider tip sheet, Appendix I. V-pGALS Teaching Strategies