Following a year in which demand for telehealth services rose significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s Commission on Goals, an interdisciplinary group of thought leaders that reviews healthcare trends and provides guidance on potential strategic areas of focus for ASHP, convened March 16th and discussed strategies to optimize medication outcomes through the use of telehealth.
As a result of rapid implementation and uptake in telehealth, patients have been able to avoid previous barriers to care, such as time and distance, that were only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This success suggests that the use of telehealth as a means of healthcare delivery is likely to continue, even beyond the pandemic.
Telehealth claim lines increased 3,000% nationally from October 2019 to October 2020, according to recently released report from FAIR Health, an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to transparency in healthcare costs and health insurance information. Additionally, 49% of executives representing healthcare provider organizations listed telehealth and virtual care as a top innovation priority in the report “Top of Mind for Top Health Systems 2021” by the Center for Connected Medicine and KLAS.
The Commission on Goals*, which includes leaders from medicine, nursing, pharmacy, public health, academia, and government, was charged with bringing their unique perspective on how collectively the following goals can be achieved:
- Identifying necessary changes to transform and advance patient-centered care and medication-use optimization, including comprehensive medication management through telehealth.
- Identifying actionable solutions to help address barriers to broader adoption of telehealth across interprofessional teams in a post-pandemic future.
The commission focused discussions on patient-centered care and creating value, interprofessional workforce transformation, and trends and opportunities in the telehealth or digital health space that will have a significant impact on healthcare over the next three to five years.
Proceedings of the commission meeting will be published online ahead of print in a forthcoming issue of AJHP.
*Commission on Goals Roster
Kelly Smith, Pharm.D., FASHP, FCCP
Commission Chair
Dean and Professor
University of Georgia College of Pharmacy
Kathleen S. Pawlicki, B.S. Pharm, M.S., R.Ph., FASH
Immediate Past President, American Society of Health-System Pharmacists
Commission Vice Chair
Paul Abramowitz, Pharm.D., Sc.D. (Hon), FASHP
Chief Executive Officer
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists
Katherine Capps, B.S.
Co-founder, Executive Director
GTMRx
Michael R. Crawford, M.B.A., M.H.L.
Associate Dean for Strategy, Outreach, and Innovation
Howard University College of Medicine
CAPT Darin D. Daly, M.S., MT (ASCP)
Senior Public Health Analyst
Office of Northern Health Services/Midwest Division
Bureau of Primary Health Care
Health Resource Service Administration
Department of Health and Human Services
Christina E. DeRemer, Pharm.D., BCPS, BCACP, TTS, FASHP
Clinical Associate Professor, University of Florida College of Pharmacy
Ambulatory Clinical Specialist, Community Health and Family Medicine Clinic – Old Town
Tina Gustin, D.N.P., CNS, RN
Associate Professor DNP Program
Director of Telehealth Center for Innovation, Education, and Research (C-TIER)
Old Dominion University
Leonie Heyworth, M.D., M.P.H.
National Synchronous Telehealth Lead
VA Office of Connected Care
Michelle Hood, M.H.A., FACHE
Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer
American Hospital Association
Patricia "Tricia" Killingsworth, R.Ph.
National Director Pharmacy Integration
Ascension Rx
Mei Kwong, J.D.
Executive Director
Center for Connected Health Policy
Raymond McCall, B.S.Pharm, R.Ph., CSSBB
Chief Strategy Officer
Medly Pharmacy
Alan Morgan, M.P.A.
Chief Executive Officer
National Rural Health Association
Karen Schulder Rheuban, M.D.
Senior Associate Dean for Continuing Medical Education and External Affairs
Medical Director, Office of Telemedicine
UVA Health
Steven Shook, M.D., M.B.A.
Strategic Lead for Virtual Health
Vice Chairman of Operations & Quality Improvement Officer, Neurological Institute
Cleveland Clinic
Chris Syverson, B.S.
Chief Executive Officer
Nevada Business Group on Health
Andrew R. Watson, M.D., M.Litt., FACS
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Vice President, Clinical Information Technology Transformation, International Division
Medical Director, Telemedicine
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Kathy Hsu Wibberly, Ph.D.
Director
Mid-Atlantic Telehealth Resource Center
UVA Center for Telehealth
CAPT David Wong, M.D.
Chief Medical Officer
Office of Minority Health, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Health
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Kasey Thompson, Pharm.D., M.S., M.B.A.
Commission Secretary
Chief Operating Officer & Senior Vice President
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists
