After partnering with Bluestream Health to power its virtual urgent care experience, NYC Health + Hospitals was able to leverage its ability to remotely provide services and care.
Through its technology, the Bluestream Health system allowed for multiple entry points over either video or phone/audio.
"Virtual ExpressCare as a key value driver for NYC Health + Hospitals aims to serve episodic care needs, avoiding higher-cost hospital utilization, and to connect patients into primary care," Erfan Karim, senior director of mobile integrated health at New York City Health + Hospitals, told Healthcare IT News. "So it is critically important to show that the service was able to meet those episodic care needs on its own right. Virtual ExpressCare has been able to help five out of six patients avoid a subsequent trip to an urgent care center or hospital emergency department within seven days."
The 911 call volumes surged from an average of just over 4,000 calls per day to more than 7,000 calls per day in New York City during the pandemic, Healthcare IT News reported.
The goal of NYC Health + Hospitals' Virtual ExpressCare is to provide on-demand, convenient virtual urgent care to reach the patient where they are. In its first year, NYC Health + Hospitals treated more than 16,000 patients through the virtual system, according to Healthcare IT News.
