Impact of Pediatric Electronic Consultations in a Federally Qualified Health Center.

Background

Access to pediatric specialty care is a challenge, particularly for medically underserved populations.

Introduction

One evolving method that has shown promise in helping ameliorate this disparity is electronic consultations (e-consults). Materials and

Methods

This retrospective cohort study compared two groups: patients referred to pediatric cardiology, endocrinology, or pulmonology from a Federally-Qualified Health Center 10 months before the implementation of an evidence-based care pathway and those referred in the 10 months after implementation. The care pathway included evidence-based referral guidelines for common pediatric diagnoses and an e-consult process. Data included patient demographics, dates of referral requests, appointment dates, e-consult response dates and times, diagnosis codes, and consultants' recommendations.

Results

Twenty-three percent of all referrals made postimplementation were submitted for an e-consult, with 53% preventing an unnecessary face-to-face visit. The most common reason for an e-consult was heart murmur/chest pain for cardiology, short stature for endocrinology, and asthma for pulmonology. Discussion: Providers used e-consults for nearly one-quarter of all consultations postimplementation, resulting in 17% of consultations not needing a face-to-face visit. The use of e-consults combined with evidence-based referral guidelines provided a useful tool to help front line pediatric primary care providers manage complex problems and identify those not needing to see a specialist in person.

Conclusions

Evidence-based care pathways combined with e-consults can help improve access to pediatric specialty care by reducing demand for in-person visits and allowing more care to be delivered in primary care.