Shaping a workflow for telehealth diabetes care
Optimizing clinical workflows to support patients with diabetes is essential to improve patient engagement and clinical outcomes.
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Implementing a new workflow
Telehealth is a method of providing health care. When used in combination with in-person care, it allows providers to communicate with their patients and provide individualized treatment. Implementing a workflow can help create or improve processes for delivering seamless care and evaluating quality of remote care. These components may include:
- Identifying a member of the team who can help the patient review and select technology
- Determining which staff member(s) will monitor health information sent by the patient
- Facilitating ongoing communication between a patient and provider to regularly review data and topics such as diet and nutrition, medication management, or ways to monitor glycemic control
- Creating a schedule for regular follow-up visits, either through telehealth or in-person, depending on the needs and preferences of the patient
- Saving documentation to the patient's files
Learn more about planning your telehealth workflow.
Hardware and software for diabetes management
Invest in the appropriate hardware and software to establish a successful telehealth program for diabetes management. The software application must allow the patient to collect, record, and send information, either manually or automatically, so that it is accessible to the provider. This information may come through a secure messaging channel or be integrated into the electronic health record, allowing the provider to view it and take action, as necessary. Read more about telehealth technology options.
Engaging patients in health care
Patients and their caregivers are key stakeholders that should be engaged in the decision to use telehealth for diabetes care. Stakeholders benefit from continuous education and support. This is essential to optimize their use of telehealth technology to manage diabetes.
Onboarding patients
Create an onboarding process to help patients and their caregivers understand how the different types of telehealth technology can be used to manage diabetes. As part of this process, have a dedicated staff member practice how to collect and share patients' diabetes data with the provider.
Patient education and support
Establish a process to introduce and explain the various digital tools for diabetes self-management. Provide training regularly since the technology for diabetes care is rapidly evolving. Establish ongoing education on the use of telehealth technologies to ensure that patients and their caregivers use them properly and effectively.
More resources
Remote Patient Monitoring Toolkit — from the California Telehealth Resource Center
Continuous Glucose Monitoring — from the National Institute for Diabetes and Digestive Kidney Disease
Mobile Applications for Self- Management of Diabetes — from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality