The AHRQ has launched a free quality improvement program called “Safety Program for Telemedicine: Improving the Diagnostic Process” to help primary care practices improve the cancer diagnostic process. The program aims to strengthen the safety culture in practices, improve care coordination, and reduce delays in the diagnostic process for cancer in telemedicine-enabled primary care settings. The program is transferable and may contribute to improved diagnostic processes for other conditions. The deadline to apply is May 25, 2023.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has launched the “Safety Program for Telemedicine: Improving the Diagnostic Process,” a free quality improvement program aimed at helping practices improve the cancer diagnostic process. Led by NORC at the University of Chicago, Johns Hopkins University, and Baylor College of Medicine, the program targets primary care practices, including OB/GYNs, to improve the cancer diagnostic process in telemedicine-enabled primary care settings.
The diagnostic process for cancer is complex, multistep, and often involves several specialties. Patients can fall through the cracks, resulting in a delayed or missed diagnosis. Telemedicine adds another layer of complexity and can serve as both a barrier and a facilitator to the diagnostic process.
The AHRQ program aims to improve the cancer diagnostic process by strengthening the safety culture in primary care practices and helping them close the loop on care transitions and other vulnerable processes along the cancer diagnostic pathway. The program targets key points throughout the diagnostic process where there are opportunities to reduce delays and improve care coordination.
Dr. Hardeep Singh, professor of medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, and Andrea Bradford, a team scientist and associate professor at Baylor College of Medicine, are two of the investigators for the program. Singh co-developed the national VA policy on diagnostic test results communication and co-chaired the National Quality Forum committee on health information technology safety measurement recommendations. Bradford has more than a decade of experience as a clinical psychologist embedded in medical specialty settings.
In a recent interview, Singh and Bradford discussed the program’s goals and how it can help practices improve the cancer diagnostic process in telemedicine-enabled primary care settings.
Singh noted that the program is currently recruiting primary care, OB/GYN, community-based health, and urgent care clinics for the program. Over 18 months, participants will gain practical knowledge and skills to address several vulnerabilities in the diagnostic process, such as referrals, follow-up of abnormal test results, and managing diagnostic uncertainty. Through a series of brief, interactive webinars, clinicians and practice staff will learn skills and strategies they can pilot in their practices. The program also includes support to implement these strategies, including one-on-one consultation with a quality improvement adviser and learning collaborative sessions with other participating practices.
Bradford highlighted that the program will help practices close the loop at critical points in the diagnostic process by leveraging technologies already in place and deploying IT in a way that maximizes impact in a hybrid (both telemedicine and in-person) environment. It is free to practice, engages clinicians and staff, and provides expert consultation. Through the program, practices will build skills to learn from their own data. Support will be provided for building capacity and infrastructure for data collection, reporting, analysis, and feedback. These data will help practices pinpoint gaps in current processes that can be targeted for improvement and assess the impact of any changes.
Singh emphasized that the program is an exciting opportunity for clinicians to expand their technical knowledge and improve care quality and patient safety while earning continuing medical education units and American Board of Internal Medicine Maintenance of Certification points, as eligible. Recognizing that hybrid care is now common, this program will help clinicians understand how to optimize the application of telemedicine during the diagnostic process.
Bradford hoped that participating practices would implement enhanced diagnostic processes that result in fewer patients with delayed or missed cancer diagnoses. While the program focuses on cancer, the strategies learned in this program are transferable and may also contribute to improved diagnostic processes for other conditions. Through webinars, coaching, and collaborative peer learning, participants will learn best practices for closing the loop at critical points in the diagnostic process for cancer in the telemedicine environment, be better prepared to serve an increasing patient volume over telemedicine, and emerge with skills that improve patient safety, prevent harm, and enhance care delivery quality.
