Resident physicians are delivering care more often via telehealth and, in turn, that’s had a big impact on their learning since the COVID-19 public health emergency escalated use of virtual care.

For educators looking to understand how to best equip their residents for the changing care environment, a faculty development course in the AMA GME Competency Education Program, which offers CME, provides strategies and solutions on how to incorporate telehealth into clinical training while fostering competency development and resident assessment. 

The continuing professional development modules are available to faculty at residency institutions that have subscribed to the AMA’s program. Learn more.

Julian Genkins, MD, is a physician, informaticist and educator in Nashville, Tennessee, where he is assistant professor of medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. Dr. Genkins also contributed to telehealth education content produced by the AMA, including parts of the AMA GME Competency Education Program module on telehealth training and the AMA Telehealth Clinical Education Playbook (registration required). He offers these four tips to resident physicians looking to hone their telehealth skills.

Dr. Genkins first reminds us that the domain of telehealth extends beyond a digital video visit. 

“Learning the whole domain of telehealth is important,” said Dr. Genkins, an AMA member. “How do I interact with patients over messages? How do I triage? How do I build a system so I am not feeling overwhelmed?”

Residents, he added, should “learn how to work with your team and how to delegate tasks digitally. Learn about things like remote patient monitoring and what kind of access patients have to technology like blood pressure cuffs and glucose monitors. Don’t be afraid to leverage and explore technology.” 

From AI implementation to EHR adoption and usability, the AMA is fighting to make technology work for physicians, ensuring that it is an asset to doctors—not a burden.

Visit AMA Advocacy in Action to find out what’s at stake in supporting telehealth and other advocacy priorities the AMA is actively working on.

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As a resident physician, it’s essential to consider “what is your setup, whether you are at home or at the office,” Dr. Genkins said. “Take time to think about how you are going to organize your office and iterate on that. Do the same thing every time. Eliminate the uncertainty around it and make the investment and overhead upfront on a good office setup.”

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Telehealth is a different method of delivering care and it might require a different approach to growing one’s skill set than in-person clinical encounters. Some residents believe that telemedicine doesn’t provide as rich a learning opportunity. 

“If you are not getting a lot out of learning via telemedicine, I would challenge the resident to think through: Is this because my preceptor is struggling in the environment? And I would challenge the trainee, as a digital native, to think about, how can I carry some of this organizational load?” Genkins said. “How can I come to them and manage up and leverage your skills and comfort with technology so that I can unlock time and brain space for my preceptor to guide me?”

The AMA Telehealth Clinical Education Playbook builds on the success of the AMA Telehealth Implementation Playbook (PDF). The AMA also has created the Telehealth Quick Guide with tips and tools for getting started, evaluating and selecting vendors, and workflow and patient care.

Telehealth is a new technology that has room to grow. Because of that, residents can feel empowered about expressing ideas for innovation. 

“We are excited by a lot of the digital tools in medicine,” Dr. Genkins said. “So, if you are not seeing opportunities to learn about this domain, think about innovating in this space. Think about: How can I as a learner help my program recognize this gap? How can I engage the experts at my institution to learn from them? Even an hour spent with someone who understands the world of telehealth and the skills that are really necessary can really unlock for you a lot of doors.” 

The AMA GME Competency Education Program covers topics including well-being, QI and patient safety, residents as teachers, navigating health systems, health equity, professionalism and faculty development. Schedule a meeting to discuss your organization’s needs.