Digitized Health

Authors Lili Worre Høpfner Jensen Interdisciplinary Orthopaedics, Department of Orthopaedics, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg; Laboratory for Welfare Technologies – Digital Health & Rehabilitation, ExerciseTech, Department of Health Science and Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg East https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5932-7700 Søren Kold Interdisciplinary Orthopaedics, Department of Orthopaedics, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3387-1473 Birthe Dinesen Laboratory for Welfare Technologies – Digital Health & Rehabilitation, ExerciseTech, Department of Health Science and Technology, Aalborg University, Aalborg East Hans-Christen Husum Interdisciplinary Orthopaedics, Department of Orthopaedics, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6953-042X Regitze Gyldenholm Skals Research Data and Biostatistics, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark Søren Peter Eiskjær Interdisciplinary Orthopaedics, Department of Orthopaedics, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg Rasmus Elsøe Interdisciplinary Orthopaedics, Department of Orthopaedics, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg Ole Rahbek Interdisciplinary Orthopaedics, Department of Orthopaedics, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5602-4533 DOI: https://doi.org/10.2340/17453674.2024.40707 Keywords: digital communication, interdisciplinary communication, patient-provider communication, randomized clinical trial, team-based care, text messaging Abstract Background and purpose: Post-discharge inquiries to the hospital are predominantly conducted through phone calls. The rigid timing of these calls is inconvenient for patients and disrupts the workflows of healthcare professionals. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a team-based digital communication intervention (eDialogue) facilitated through a messenger-like commercial solution on patient-initiated phone calls to the hospital after discharge. Secondarily, we investigated other patient-initiated contacts, patients’ perception of continuity of care, and their perception of feeling safe and satisfied after hospital discharge.Methods: On the day of discharge, 70 surgically treated orthopedic patients were randomized to the intervention group with access to eDialogue (n = 35) or the control group with standard communication pathways by phone call (n = 35) for the following 8 weeks. Through eDialogue, the intervention group had access to team-based asynchronous digital communication in text and photos with healthcare professionals across disciplines and sectors. Inclusion criteria were discharge to own home and receipt of rehabilitation services from both hospital and primary care after discharge.Results: We found a significant reduction in the mean number of patient-initiated phone calls to the hospital from 2.3 (95% confidence interval [CI] 1.4–4.1) in the control group to 0.5 (CI 0.3–1.0) in the intervention group (P = 0.004). Across groups, patients reported similar perceptions of continuity of care; however, the participants in the intervention group expressed significantly improved perceptions of, and satisfaction with, access to healthcare after discharge.Conclusion: Access to eDialogue reduced patient-initiated phone calls to the hospital, enhanced patient satisfaction with healthcare accessibility, and did not compromise patients’ perception of continuity of care after discharge compared with standard communication pathways. Downloads Download data is not yet available. 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By Nate MacLeitch, founder and CEO, QuickBlox. We’ve come a long way since the University of Nebraska pioneered two-way video communication for telemedicine in 1959. Today, telehealth enables healthcare providers to expand access to medical support, improve patient convenience, streamline workflows, and enhance clinical outcomes. But as telehealth has grown, so too have the regulations around it. The software behind telehealth — including on laptops, tablets, the cloud, and increasingly AI — requires careful governance and robust security protocols to ensure patient privacy in accordance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). The following explores how telehealth can alleviate administrative burdens and create a more efficient experience, while HIPAA compliance ensures the product is safe for both patients and providers to trust. HIPAA Compliance Builds Patient and Clinicians’ Trust While demand for digital health adoption from patients (33%) and providers (36%) is rising, over half of clinicians surveyed are still concerned about data breaches or malware attacks on their healthcare data, global advisor HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) reports. Securely communicating sensitive patient information (PHI) within a healthcare organization can be challenging when relying on everyday tools like SMS, Skype, and email. While these platforms offer encryption mechanisms, they fall short in two key areas. Firstly, achieving effective encryption requires a uniform environment. Everyone within the organization must use compatible operating systems and the same encryption/decryption software. This uniformity can be difficult and expensive to maintain across a large organization with diverse devices and software versions. Secondly, even with encryption, the service providers themselves — like Verizon, Skype, and Google — still have access to the underlying data on their servers. Business associate agreements (BAAs) can be established to address these concerns, but these rely on the providers to maintain the integrity of the encrypted data. Here, Skype’s past actions raise red flags, and it’s fair to question if major communication companies like Verizon or Google would be comfortable with the additional responsibility and potential legal implications of healthcare data breaches. Designed to protect PHI and electronic PHI (ePHI), HIPAA outlines technical, physical, and administrative safeguards. Unauthorized access by insiders accounted for 93% of reported incidents in 2023. For security, patient data must be encrypted both in transit and at rest; its unreadable format only made accessible with authorized decryption keys, and given to healthcare personnel on a need-to-know basis. 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Appointment schedulers and reminders, instant access to patient information with electronic health record (EHR) integrations, and built-in AI assistants that can draft emails and transcribe video consultations help relieve some of the heavy lifting. Aggregated, all-in-one technology with joint ventures between communications platforms and large language models (LLMs) are helping telehealth platforms evolve to a whole new level. Sealing the partnership with HIPAA-compliant BAAs, these telehealth platforms can automate many administrative tasks, such as revising documents, updating patient records, and ensuring every patient receives their follow-up. For example, Theos Health has recently integrated a cutting-edge AI-enhanced telehealth platform, enabling remote, secure, and HIPAA-compliant patient consultations. This advanced platform not only facilitates patient triage but also automates the creation of clinical notes, identifies relevant billing and diagnosis codes, and provides transcription services. Andrew Paolillo, Product Manager at Theos Health, states, “Incorporating AI features into our telehealth platform significantly boosts clinic workflow efficiency and reduces administrative burdens for our staff.” There is a reason industries across the board are going digital; and convenience, traceability, and learning opportunities all play a huge part. Analytics dashboards can present information at a glance, and track key metrics like appointment no-show rates and patient wait times, enabling providers to identify areas for improvement and optimize workflows. Embracing telehealth is not just about meeting regulations; it’s about building patient trust, streamlining workflows, and creating a more efficient healthcare ecosystem. 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