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Telemedicine in the ICU: Support System or Slippery Slope?
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Telemedicine in the ICU: Support System or Slippery Slope?
A 26-year-old student died in an ICU in Connecticut from alcohol-induced pancreatitis. What makes this case stand out is that during his time there, the ICU wasn’t being managed by a doctor physically present—it was overseen by a telehealth ICU service, with a doctor remote on a screen.
There is now a lawsuit against the hospital. One of the claims is that intubation was delayed because the telehealth team had to get a doctor to the ICU—and that doctor was delayed after reportedly struggling to find the unit. The young man was ultimately pronounced dead by a doctor via video. His family say they were never informed this was how the ICU was being run.
I believe that around 15% of ICUs in the US now use telehealth systems, often described as a response to doctor shortages.
But this raises serious questions.
Surely replacing the human presence in emergency medicine is a real concern.
Where does this lead?
Is this cost-saving before patient care again?
And would you ask, before a loved one is admitted, whether there are doctors physically present in the ICU at all times?
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2 Replies
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Tune is to tonight’s webinar to listen to our wonderful doctors talking about the future of medicine and where the IMA is heading.
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How unimaginably sad!
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