An Outpatient Telehealth Elective for Displaced Clinical Learners during the Coronavirus Pandemic

Introduction In response to the Coronavirus pandemic, medical schools suspended clinical rotations. This displacement of students from the wards has limited experiential learning opportunities. Concurrently, outpatient practices are experiencing reduced volumes of in-person visits and shifting towards virtual healthcare. This transition comes with its own logistical challenges. Here, we discuss a workflow that enabled students to engage in meaningful clinical education while helping the RWJMS outpatient practices implement remote telehealth visits. Methods A four-week virtual elective was designed to offer clerkship students the opportunity to participate in virtual telehealth patient encounters. Students were prepared with EMR training and introduced to an outpatient workflow that supports healthcare providers in the ambulatory setting. Patients were consented to telehealth services before encounters with students. All collected clinical information was documented in the EMR, after which students transitioned patients to a virtual Doxy.me video call appointment. Clinical and educational outcomes of students’ participation were evaluated. Results Survey results showed students felt well-prepared to initiate patient encounters. They also expressed comfort while engaging with patients virtually during telehealth appointments. Students further identified educational value, citing opportunities to develop patient management plans consistent with in-person clinical experiences. A significant healthcare burden was also alleviated by student involvement. Over 1000 total scheduled appointments were serviced by students who transitioned over 80% of patients into virtual provider waiting rooms. Discussion After piloting this elective with rising fourth-year students, pre-clerkship students were also recruited to act in a role normally associated with clinical learners (e.g., elicit patient histories, conduct a review of systems, etc.). An additional telehealth elective is being designed so medical students can contribute to inpatient care without risk of exposure to SARS-CoV-2. These efforts are designed to allow students to continue with their clinical education during the pandemic. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Funding Statement No external funding was received for this study. ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: This study was approved by the Rutgers Institutional Review Board (PRO2020001884). All necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable. Yes Survey materials and data spreadsheets are available upon request.