What You Should Know:
– The American Telemedicine Association (ATA) has announced the creation of a new Clinician Council to tackle hurdles hindering the widespread adoption of telehealth and virtual care.
– This new Clinician Council aims to address emerging platforms and technologies supporting tech-enabled healthcare, while building trust through a “Trust Agenda” emphasizing responsibility, credibility, and integrity within the industry.
Clinician Council Leadership and Focus
- Ann Mond Johnson, CEO of the ATA: Highlighted the importance of the council in informing stakeholders about telehealth benefits and fostering a productive dialogue around its future.
- Joe Kvedar, MD, Council Chair and ATA Senior Clinical Advisor: Underscored the council’s focus on building trust, advising on healthcare ethics, patient/provider experiences, and relevant standards/guidelines.
- Lois Ritter, EdD, MS, MA, MS-HCA, ATA Research Director: Will support the council’s research, initiatives, and administration.
Clinician Council Composition:
- Clinicians from diverse healthcare specialties, including physicians, nurses, advanced practitioners, physical therapists, and psychologists.
- Two-year term for each council member.
The inaugural Clinician Council members are:
- Gokhan Anil, MD (Mayo Clinic)
- Melynda Barnes, MD (Ro)
- Sameer Berry, MD, MBA (Oshi Health)
- Ethan Booker, MD (MedStar Health)
- Patrick Carroll, MD (HIMS, Inc.)
- Ian Choe, MD (Optum)
- Bonnie Clipper, DNP, MA, MBA, RN (Innovation Advantage)
- Melinda Cooling, APRN (OSF HealthCare)
- Abigail Crawford, APRN, FNP-C (WVU Medicine)
- Carrie Culpepper, RN, FNP-C, MBA (Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center)
- Carlos Estrada, MD, MBA (Boston Children’s Hospital)
- Charles Fisher, PT, MPT, MBA (Hospital for Special Surgery)
- Debora Fisher, RN-BSN, MPH/A (MobileHelp/Clear Arch Health)
- Leanna Fortunato, PhD (American Psychological Association)
- Gail Golab, DVM, PhD (American Veterinary Medical Association)
- Linda Goodwin, MSN, RN (CommonSpirit)
- Shawn Griffin, MD (URAC)
- Derrick Haslem, MD (Intermountain Health)
- Helen Hughes, MD, MPH (Johns Hopkins Medicine)
- Anney Joseph, OD, FAAO (Department of Veterans Affairs)
- Florence Kariuki, RN, BSN (Health Recovery Solutions)
- John Kazianis, MD (Hicuity Health)
- Malik Khan, MD, FCCP (Corewell Health)
- Jade Le, MD (Access Telecare)
- Shannon MacDonald, MD (Mass General Brigham)
- Ateev Mehrotra, MD, MPH (Harvard Medical School)
- David Newman, MD (Sanford Health)
- Ngoc-Anh Nguyen, MD (Houston Methodist)
- Jordan Pritzker, MD, MBA (Aetna)
- Adonis Saremi, MD (Noom, Inc.)
- Helen Schnase, MD, MBA (Transcarent)
- Kate Steinle, MSN (FolxHealth)
- Kellie Swink BSN, RN (Children’s National Medical Center)
- Greg Weidner, MD, FACP (One Medical/Amazon)
- Eric Weil, MD (MDLive by Evernorth)
- Huiling Zhang, MD, MPH, MBA (Philips)
Future Plans
The Clinician Council’s first meeting will be held during the ATA’s EDGE Policy Conference, taking place December 13-15 in Washington, D.C.
“The Clinician Council will prioritize building trust within the healthcare community and advise on key topics like healthcare ethics, patient and provider experiences with virtual care, and standards, guidelines, and practices for ATA members. We look forward to leveraging the Council’s collective thought leadership, unique perspectives, and vision to guide the future of telehealth and virtual care,” said Dr. Joe Kvedar, the ATA’s Immediate Past Chair and Senior Clinical Advisor.
