Spectrum Health leverages telehealth to treat patients with the flu

Michigan, like nearly every state, is in the midst of one of the worst flu seasons in recent memory.

The spike in patient visits has taxed healthcare organizations as they look for creative ways to handle the surge of patients. But for Spectrum Health, a 14-hospital system based in Grand Rapids, Mich., telemedicine has greatly reduced the strain on patients, staff and the organization overall.

About 50% of Spectrum’s 100 average daily virtual visits are related to flu symptoms, said Elizabeth Suing, a physician assistant who treats patients using telehealth platform Spectrum Health Now.

The use of telehealth to treat the flu allows emergency departments and physician offices to spend more time and resources on patients who appropriately require services because fewer patients are coming in with moderate cases. That saves money for the system and patients.

“We have fewer patients going to the ED or urgent care and it’s opened up access in our primary-care offices where they can see more patients for” chronic disease management), Suing said.

As of Jan. 23, Spectrum estimated that using telehealth saved patients and payers $657,359. Savings for patients accounted for $247,000 of that based on average out-of-pocket costs of ED, urgent-care and office visits. And there’s some evidence the patients who used virtual services would’ve sought care somewhere else in the system. According to a survey of patients who had flu-like symptoms and used a virtual visit between October 2019 and mid-January, 2.6% said they would’ve gone to the ED instead, 36.5% would’ve gone to their primary-care office, 42.7% would’ve used urgent care and 7.3% would not have sought care.

The flu in most circumstances is a good candidate for virtual care. Patients don’t want to leave home because of the symptoms associated with the illness, and it keeps them from coughing and touching chairs or magazines in waiting rooms. “There’s no risk of them spreading their disease or catching someone else’s” with a virtual visit, Suing said.

The use of Spectrum Health Now virtual care for the flu is on the rise this year—4,481 flu-related visits as of Jan. 23, an increase of 34% over the prior-year period.

The rise in virtual visits is likely due in part to patients’ increased comfort with telehealth along with Spectrum’s robust marketing efforts, said Keith Hustak, the system’s vice president of app services and operations.

Physicians and nurses encourage patients who present to their practice or the ED to consider using the telehealth service if low-acuity illnesses come up including the flu, pink eye or rashes. The marketing department has also put up signage and pamphlets in physician practices advertising the service. Social media campaigns targeted at millennials and mothers have been used as well.

Something else that’s likely helped boost users was the launch two years ago of Spectrum Health’s own app allowing patients to use their smartphones or tablets for the appointment and to schedule visits. Spectrum previously used third-party video conferencing services. The app “has really helped with the ease of use,” Suing said.

Patients can be seen by a provider anytime within 10 minutes of logging on to the app. About 24 physician assistants and nurse practitioners are part of the telehealth team.

Many steps are taken to assess if a patient has the flu. Patients are asked to take their temperature, point the phone’s camera at their mouth so the clinician can check for redness in their throat, and answer questions about prior history of the flu and their overall symptoms. Chronic conditions are taken into consideration as well.

Insurers like the Michigan Blues and Priority Health typically cover the virtual visits. If patients are paying out of pocket it costs $45 at most.

Hustak said Spectrum largely dominates the telehealth space in Michigan although it still faces competition from national companies like MDLive.

Flu treatment has been offered by MDLive since its inception in 2009. Rich Berner, CEO of the company, said most health systems are relying on third-party platforms like MDLive to provide telehealth services because they can take advantage of its technology infrastructure and expertise.

Spectrum plans to expand its telehealth offerings in the coming years with a goal that 50% of its primary-care visits will be done virtually.