UVA School of Medicine

63 Specialty Services Available 51,371 Telemedicine Services Provided in the Last 10 Years 152 Number of Partner Facilities 15 million Driving Miles Saved 6,248 tons Carbon Emissions Saved Center to read—which risks the possibility that women won't follow up if there is a suspicious find- ing—the digital images are telecommunicated to physicians who can immediately determine if fur- ther studies are necessary. similarly, the Center found that there was a significant population of migrant workers in the shenandoah Valley who didn't get adequate prenatal care for high-risk pregnancies. instead of trying to get these women to come to the Medical Center, obstetricians provide telemedicine consultations at Health Department clinics. this project has proven highly successful, reducing the number of preterm deliveries and containing costs by reducing the length of stay for babies who might need the costly care of a neonatal intensive care. telemedicine is also being used in stroke emer- gencies to reach victims of an acute ischemic stroke who might be too far from the Medical Center to transport. stroke neurologists at UVa can view the real-time Ct scan, determine whether it's appropri- ate to administer the clot busting agent tissue plas- minogen activator and direct the physician at the originating site to carry out this intervention within the optimum window of opportunity. Making it Work UVa's Office of telemedicine has developed partner- ships with programs at more than 150 sites through- out the state, providing a wide array of health care services from psychiatric evaluations to an epilepsy clinic at the Health Department in Bristol. "We'll go anywhere there's a need as long as we can ensure privacy and have a secure connection, which are fundamentally important," says David Cattell-Gordon, director of the UVa Office of telemedicine, the Center's logistics arm. What makes this work is the number of specialty providers at UVa who are eager to engage in telemedicine encounters. While it's not mandatory for any physician to participate, more than 800 providers in more than 60 different specialties have signed on to offer their services. Rheuban's tireless efforts to remove policy barriers to providing health care in this form are also critical to the success of telemedicine. the Center for telehealth has championed legislation that, for example, makes it mandatory for third-party payers to reimburse telemedicine services at the same rate as in-person services. Ultimately, however, even immersed in this digital environment, what makes telemedicine work so well is the way it allows UVa providers to easily reach out to patients as far away as southwest Virginia and beyond and still maintain the connection that is at the heart of the therapeutic encounter. "so much of health care is about forming relationships," says Cattell-Gordon. "Even with this high-tech capability, the desire at the center of it all is to really be able to see patients and care for them. laying eyes on a person, even if it's through broadband video-conferencing, keeps the interaction relationship based." TeLeMeDiCine STaTiSTiCS in recognition of dr. rheuban's leadership and commitment in the development of the field of telehealth, the University of Virginia board of Visitors, at their fall 2015 meeting, unanimously agreed to name the center for telehealth the Karen S. Rheuban Center for Telehealth. 17 Vitals Spring 2016

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