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Zullig LL, Lewinski AA, Woolson SL, White-Clark C, Miller C, Bosworth HB, Burleson SC, Garrett MP, Darling KL, Crowley MJ. Research-practice partnerships: Adapting a care coordination intervention for rural Veterans over 3 years at multiple sites. J Rural Health 2023; 39:575-581. [PMID: 36661336 DOI: 10.1111/jrh.12740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Rural Veterans are more likely than urban Veterans to qualify for community care (Veterans Health Administration [VHA]-paid care delivered outside of VHA) due to wait times ≥30 days and longer travel times for VHA care. For rural Veterans receiving both VHA and community care, suboptimal care coordination between VHA and community providers can result in poor follow-up and care fragmentation. We developed Telehealth-based Coordination of Non-VHA Care (TECNO Care) to address this problem. METHODS We iteratively developed and adapted TECNO Care with partners from the VHA Office of Rural Health and site-based Home Telehealth Care in the Community programs. Using templated electronic health record notes, Home Telehealth nurses contacted Veterans monthly to facilitate communication with VHA/community providers, coordinate referrals, reconcile medications, and follow up on acute episodes. We evaluated TECNO Care using a patient-level, pre-post effectiveness assessment and rapid qualitative analysis with individual interviews of Veterans and VHA collaborators. Our primary effectiveness outcome was a validated care coordination quality measure. We calculated mean change scores for each care continuity domain. FINDINGS Between March 2019 and October 2021, 83 Veterans received TECNO Care. Veterans were predominately White (86.4%) and male (88.6%) with mean age 71.4 years (SD 10.4). Quantitative data demonstrated improvements in perceived care coordination following TECNO Care in 7 categories. Qualitative interviews indicated that Veterans and Home Telehealth nurses perceived TECNO Care as beneficial and addressing an area of high need. CONCLUSIONS TECNO Care appeared to improve the coordination of VHA and community care and was valued by Veterans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leah L Zullig
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Population Health Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Allison A Lewinski
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- School of Nursing, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Sandra L Woolson
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Courtney White-Clark
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Christopher Miller
- Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research (CHOIR), VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Hayden B Bosworth
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Population Health Sciences, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- School of Nursing, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, School of Nursing, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | | | - Mary P Garrett
- Durham VA Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Kristen L Darling
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
| | - Matthew J Crowley
- Center of Innovation to Accelerate Discovery and Practice Transformation, Durham Veterans Affairs Health Care System, Durham, North Carolina, USA
- Division of Endocrinology, Diabetes, and Metabolism, Duke University School of Medicine, Durham, North Carolina, USA
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