Laura Kilcline is a registered dietitian/nutritionist, personal follow proprietor and president of the Rhode Island Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics.
If telemedicine in RI is right here to remain, medical diet remedy needs to be included. The COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on many points of our health-care system, but it surely additionally began some constructive adjustments.
One of essentially the most hanging was former Governor Raimondo’s emergency govt order increasing entry to telemedicine companies for all Rhode Islanders and guaranteeing “pay parity” for suppliers. This signifies that a health care provider, dietitian or different licensed skilled offering telemedicine visits have to be paid the identical quantity as if the appointment occurred in individual. This was not the case earlier than the pandemic. Permanent parity for telemedicine is at present into consideration by the Rhode Island General Assembly, however in various varieties.
Telemedicine has made certain that the pandemic wouldn’t cease Rhode Islanders from getting the medical care they wanted. One essential a part of that care is medical diet remedy companies offered by registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs). When the general public well being emergency ends, these guidelines will expire. When they do, it is going to be tougher for a few of our state’s most susceptible residents to get the care they want.
Many folks profit from telemedicine: mother and father with younger youngsters, folks with mobility points (together with many older adults), folks with out transportation and people with rigid work schedules. It is time to cease letting these boundaries get in the way in which of high quality well being care. With the expertise out there in the present day, it’s best to be capable to schedule medical appointments throughout your toddler’s naptime with out worrying about wheelchair entry, bus routes or discovering a experience and with out having to sacrifice your restricted trip time for medical appointments.
Registered dietitian nutritionists present diet counseling and training to assist folks eat higher, really feel higher and forestall and deal with illnesses like diabetes, coronary heart illness, consuming issues and kidney illness. Since outpatient dietitians don’t usually carry out bodily exams, most diet visits are equally efficient over the cellphone or by way of video chat. In some circumstances, telemedicine enhances the affected person expertise by giving the RDN a glimpse into the house meals surroundings (reminiscent of reviewing meals gadgets in a affected person’s pantry), and through the use of expertise to show sufferers about essential diet subjects associated to their well being. If extra Rhode Islanders are capable of entry RDNs by way of telehealth, we are able to proceed to enhance public well being in a cheap manner by way of preventative care.
Consider the case of Gladys, who has struggled to persistently preserve appointments together with her well being care suppliers for months, since she was so sick it was laborious for her to depart her residence. However, by way of telemedicine, Gladys was capable of meet together with her dietitian most weeks to get assist discovering methods to extend her diet. During the time assembly together with her dietitian, she was capable of eat extra and achieve power and now is ready to take extra frequent walks and go to together with her daughter and granddaughters due to her telemedicine appointments.
Change within the legislation is required and we’re encouraging our state legislature to incorporate medical diet remedy within the telemedicine payments being thought of. The Senate model of this invoice would guarantee protection and equal cost for under main care physicians and behavioral well being care suppliers, which whereas an essential step ahead, leaves out the essential work dietitians carry out. The House model of this laws (which RIAND helps), nevertheless, is far more inclusive and impactful.
Telemedicine is not only expertise; it’s about ensuring everybody will get the well being care they want. We urge the Rhode Island General Assembly to incorporate medical diet remedy as an eligible telemedicine remedy within the last model of the telemedicine invoice.
