The Benefit of Telehealth for Antimicrobial Stewardship Programs

There are many effective telehealth antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASPs) in place today. However, how hospital systems develop effective and sustainable ASPs isn’t an exact science. In the following journal article written by ID Connect’s Christina Andrzejewski, PharmD, BCPS, BCIDP, Clinical Intelligence Specialist, she discusses aspects of telehealth solutions that are successful in hospital sites that are rural, remote, or with otherwise limited resources as well as ways to improve programs using current literature and findings to improve outcomes.

The article covers the following topics in more detail, including:

Roadblocks to developing an effective and sustainable ASP
How telehealth can be an alternative option to clinical sites lacking infectious diseases (ID) expertise and offer a more favorable solution than placing an additional burden on current resources.
Available data on tele-antimicrobial stewardship program (TASP) models that have been successful by offering fully remote, integrated or collaborative models with remote ID physicians and ID pharmacists as leaders.
Why on-site stewardship pharmacists or other clinical champions are vital to the success of TASPs by their unique ability to:
- Build trusting relationships with prescribers and key stakeholders
- Facilitate uptake of interventions and acceptance of the TASP
- Ensure timely therapy changes for patients
Future research needs are efforts in critical access hospitals, outpatient settings, the use of technology, and impact on patient-centered outcomes.

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