Access TeleCare physicians are at the forefront of health care delivery, bringing high-acuity specialty medicine to communities across the country through telemedicine. Our physicians are also committed to advancing the industry through academic research.
Research on Telemedicine’s Environmental and Economic Impact
The Access TeleCare teleMaternal-fetal medicine team presents some of their research findings at the 2023 annual meeting of the Society for Maternal Fetal Medicine in February 2023 on the positive environmental and economic impact of telemedicine. Their research is the first of its kind to evaluate the environmental impact of a maternal-fetal medicine telemedicine program.
TeleMFM’s Role in Reducing Emissions and Women’s Health
Based on analysis of 2,454 visits to three teleMFM clinics over eight months, the team found that teleMFM utilization, in lieu of travel to an in-person maternal-fetal specialist, resulted in savings of 204 miles and 200 minutes per round-trip visit for patients. Total savings from teleMFM use were $144,611 for patients and 95 metric tons of emission savings.
The team notes that the environmental impact is significant given the American College of Obstetrician and Gynecologists’ position statement that “climate change is an urgent women’s health concern” because of the adverse pregnancy outcomes, including preterm birth, low birth weight, and stillbirth, associated with climate change.
