NEJM Catalyst: Community Tele-Paramedicine to Improve Telehealth Access for Underserved Populations
NewYork-Presbyterian and the Weill Cornell Medicine Department of Emergency Medicine designed and implemented the Community Tele-Paramedicine program to increase access to robust telehealth services for medically underserved populations and reduce preventable emergency department visits and hospital admissions for patients living with multiple chronic illnesses. Given the demonstrated benefits of the program, the authors offer lessons and recommendations for other health systems that are interested in developing a facilitated telehealth program using community paramedic visits to patients’ homes.