P2.N271: Closing Pediatric Asthma Care Gaps Through School-Based Telehealth

Purpose/Objectives: This project sought to improve the connection to a primary care provider for pediatric patients after a school-based telehealth visit for an asthma exacerbation. The primary goal was significantly increasing the ‘connection to a PCP’ within 3 months of implementing a new workflow. A secondary aim was to ensure access to emergency asthma medication at school. Despite guidelines favoring PCP referrals for pediatric asthma, a gap exists in urgent care settings across the United States. This project introduced a PCP referral checklist to address this gap, improving PCP connection, and facilitating access to rescue inhalers.

Design/Methods: A Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) design was used to streamline the PCP connection process. Participants included healthcare providers and support staff. Eligible patients are those with an asthma exacerbation identified by ICD10 code. Data analysis involved chart reviews and EHR reports to track the successful completion of PCP-related tasks and assessing gap closure through actions like medication refills and completion of school forms.

Results: The 'connection to PCP' for children experiencing an asthma exacerbation at school significantly increased (p < .001), from 21% to 71%. In addition, 86% of eligible participants were confirmed to have access to rescue medication at school for an asthma exacerbation.

Conclusion/Discussion: Additional research is needed to evaluate the effects of completing case management and 'fax PCP summary' tasks on clinical outcomes. Future investigations will assess barriers to medication access and explore partnerships with local school health offices to enhance opportunities for medication adherence.