The demand of disease-focused specificity in many ASFs may allow these facilities to set the platform as innovators in areas of telemedicine, considering telemedicine is also seen as an outpatient care source. This idea can be further understood as moving beyond telemedicine to provide acute care, but incorporating chronic care cases as well, increasing the access and exposure in provider areas of expertise to varying healthcare organizations and domains.


However, we still face disparities among populations and demographics of patients who have limited access to technological advances and or have limited medical and technological literacy.11


In order to tackle this


The demands of the pandemic stretched the resources of many U.S. hospitals beyond capacity.6


It is important to note


that a majority of data relate directly to hospitals and their infrastructure, seemingly leaving out the various medical practices and institutions that do still contribute to society’s healthcare needs, despite size. Furthermore, instead of reducing surgical procedures, rules and regulations should be implemented that enable qualified and equipped facilities, such as ASFs, with the authorization to collaborate with surrounding medical organizations and reduce the overflow of non-critical care cases. This would allow hospitals to focus their full attention and resources on critically ill patients.4


ASFs and educational opportunities Due to guidelines that required limited capacity and allowed essential workers in a facility, trainees and education were adversely affected.7


The rapid


response by freestanding outpatient ASFs to implement telehealth and telemedicine services shows how vascular medicine trainees can absorb comparative educational training from an ASF performing similar procedures as seen in the operative rooms. ASFs may even be the solution to alternative educational training, as the Society for Vascular Surgery recently released new regulations for vascular trainees, including varied approval for clinical time incorporating


20 IRQ | SPRING 2021


advanced educational opportunities such as “check-ins” and “E-visits.”8 Implementation of these suggested educational possibilities opens the door for proving further usage of ASFs during a pandemic aside from procedural duties.


Telehealth and telemedicine Over the past year, implementation, use and relaxed regulations have made telehealth and telemedicine truly a “frontline” response.9


It has been


illustrated that telemedicine use in response to the COVID-19 pandemic increased from fewer than 100 visits per day to over 2,200 visits per day over a 24-day period within a single academic institution.10


impediment, it is imperative that medical facilities and surrounding associated healthcare systems are equipped with the accommodations and understanding to cater patients’ needs in order to uphold the highest standard of continued patient satisfaction.


This single finding


leaves further room for interpretation and predictions of how the impact of telehealth has been pertinent to the success of other medical facilities during the pandemic and how it will continue.


Taking into consideration telehealth and telemedicine services in both inpatient and outpatient settings, providers may expect to see an increase in not only delivery of patient care, but quality of care as well. The advancement in telehealth technology and services has introduced more accurate and effective patient monitoring, capturing continuous data over time—which can provide a more thorough understanding of disease trends and allow providers to grow with the patient and disease.


Patient engagement and outcomes As the very first regulations and shutdowns were implemented across the country, one freestanding vascular ASF continued to try and find ways to navigate the unknown, which included the implementation of a patient satisfaction survey to gain a more thorough understanding of how patients were feeling. The execution of this patient engagement tool provided keen insight into the minds of the patients, openly and confidentially providing them with a voice and chance to be heard, while gauging how patients felt towards the pandemic and whether or not their feelings had a direct effect on their views and trust in returning to ASFs. All questions on the survey were pertinent to patient services and satisfaction.


Patients rated the comfort and cleanliness of one vascular ASF’s facilities with a 100% satisfaction with no standard deviation in ratings post-procedure, and 64% of patients stated they were not nervous about coming into the facility for their procedure. In addition to feeling comfortable and clean in the facility during a pandemic, 90% of patients who answered this question also stated that the medical staff and personnel were able


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