In the News

December

VIDEO: UC Davis Health leaders discuss artificial intelligence in health care
UC Davis Health
Two experts from UC Davis Health met to discuss where we are headed with the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in health care. 

Understanding asynchronous telehealth's benefits and barriers to use
mHealth Intelligence
Asynchronous telehealth provides numerous advantages, including convenience and timely access to care, but challenges to adoption and use remain. A 2021 study from UC Davis Health shows patients receiving asynchronous or synchronous telehealth care from psychiatrists saw improvements.

Can telehealth assessments identify infants more likely to be on the autism spectrum?
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health has received a $3.2 million grant from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to study whether it is possible to identify infants more likely to be on the autism spectrum through telehealth assessments.

November

Director gives keynote speech at telehealth conference in Australia
James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, gave the keynote speech "Telehealth: From 'Neat' to 'Necessary' and the Need for Thoughtful Implementation" Nov. 28 during the 23rd Successes and Failures in Telehealth Conference held Nov. 27-29 in Adelaide, Australia by the Australian Telehealth Society. 

When isolation increased, telehealth use went down for older adults. Why?
UC Davis Health
A UC Davis Health study published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society sheds light on disparities in telehealth access and use among older adults, particularly concerning social isolation and loneliness.

August

UC Davis Health contributes to report on digital health equity
Physicians at UC Davis Health contributed to the "Digital Health Equity: Current Practices and Approaches of Academic Medical Centers" report published by the Association of American Medical Colleges. Contributors from UC Davis Health included James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, Ashish Atreja, chief information and digital health officer, and Jennifer Rosenthal, faculty director for digital health equity and process improvement. 

July

UC Davis Health embarks on innovative care at home journey
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health has played a key role in helping the American Medical Association put together a comprehensive framework of medical services that can be delivered at home. The Health at Home Report provides valuable insights into putting a care at home program into place and using digital technologies to enhance patient care.

Pediatric GI telehealth for COVID-19 pandemic and beyond
UC Davis Health
A new review assesses the telehealth landscape and identifies future challenges for pediatric gastroenterology. 

Where telehealth stands after COVID-19
Becker's Hospital Review
Scott MacDonald, internal medicine physician and chief medical information officer for clinical informatics at UC Davis Health, discussed telehealth usage in the post-pandemic era.

Health IT execs at Johns Hopkins, Temple, UC Davis + 4 more weigh in on limits of telehealth
Becker's Hospital Review
Scott MacDonald, internal medicine physician and chief medical information officer for clinical informatics at UC Davis Health, discussed the reasons patients may seek in-person visits instead of telehealth visits, and well as the current climate in health care around telehealth. 

June

Dennis Chornenky joins UC Davis Health as first chief AI advisor
UC Davis Health
Dennis Chornenky, former senior advisor and strategy consultant in artificial intelligence (AI) and emerging technology for the White House, has been named chief AI advisor to UC Davis Health.

How AI for charting can help ease clinician burden
Healthcare IT News
Automation is bridging the gap between clinical and coding and documentation, says Tami McMasters Gomez, director of coding and clinical documentation integrity services at UC Davis Medical Center.

UC Davis Center for Health and Technology hosts AvenueM students
UC Davis Health
Community college students got a taste of what it is like to be a physician this week at the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, where they received hands-on clinical training as part of a two-week educational experience provided by AvenueM.

Rep. Doris Matsui praises UC Davis Health for digital access to care
UC Davis Health
Rep. Doris Matsui visited a UC Davis Health COVID-19 community testing site where uninsured patients with a positive diagnosis can get immediate access to a medical provider on a telehealth tablet. The Digital Health Equity Program is the result of $1.7 million in federal funding that Matsui helped secure for UC Davis Health's Digital Health Program, which seeks to improve access and continuity of care for vulnerable populations in and around Sacramento.

May

Enhancing patient access, experience at virtual care's front door
mHealth Intelligence
Daniel Stein, telehealth supervisor at UC Davis Health, discusses the challenges patients sometimes face when trying to access virtual care, and the importance of creating a seamless virtual care process to ensure patient satisfaction and improved access.

UC Davis Health receives two AAMC Telehealth Equity Catalyst Awards
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health has received two Telehealth Equity Catalyst (TEC) Awards from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) in recognition of the academic medical institution's commitment to leverage telehealth to improve health care equity.

April

Telemedicine continues to benefit small solo practices
Renal & Urology News
Sristi Sharma, a preventive medicine physician at UC Davis Health, discusses telemedicine trends and how the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in a new wave of telemedicine services nationwide.

Will telehealth save patients money or increase costs?
Technical Ripon
James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, was quoted in an article about the cost and effectiveness of telehealth.

March

Fewer than 10% of patients screened for food insecurity during pandemic
UC Davis
Research conducted by the University of California, Davis found that only 7% of primary care providers nationwide screened patients for food insecurity during the COVID-19 pandemic. If the appointment was virtual or telehealth, only 3% asked patients about their access to food. The American Journal of Preventive Medicine published the research, which suggests telehealth appointments have unique barriers.

New collaboration offers personalized treatment for patients with asthma and COPD
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health and Propeller Health have announced a new collaboration that will offer personalized treatment for high-risk patients with asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). UC Davis Health will provide the Propeller remote monitoring program to eligible patients. It includes sensors, a mobile app, web portal and personalized support.

UC Davis Health's Asish Atreja listed among top chief digital officers
UC Davis Health
Ashish Atreja, chief information and digital health officer at UC Davis Health, has been recognized by Becker’s Hospital Review as one of the top 35 chief digital officers of health systems to know. Becker's list recognized this prestigious group of leaders for their efforts to oversee digital technology integration and improve the digital patient experience.

February

Tools to support long-distance caregivers get funding boost
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health neuropsychologist Alyssa Weakley developed a unique web-based platform connects caregivers who live apart from care recipients with mild cognitive impairment and early-stage Alzheimer’s disease. The Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society and the Banatao Institute (CITRIS) at the University of California recently awarded her a one-year, $60,000 pilot grant to move this research forward.

Telemedicine reduces hospital transfers for very ill kids at rural, community emergency departments
UC Davis Health
New UC Davis Health research confirms that pediatric critical care telemedicine consults with clinicians in rural and community emergency departments result in significantly fewer interfacility transfers. The study was published February 13 in the Journal of the American Medical Association JAMA Network Open.

VIDEO: Remote patient monitoring event: Learn, engage, advance
California Telehealth Resource Center
James Marcin, vice chair for pediatric clinical research and professor of pediatrics at UC Davis Health, and Vimal Mishra, vice president of digital care at UC Davis Health, served on the "Policy and Reimbursement Panel" Feb. 9 at the Remote Patient Monitoring Event: Learn, Engage, Advance hosted by the California Telehealth Resource Center and the California Health Care Foundation. They discussed policy and reimbursement procedures for remote patient monitoring at the federal and state level. Watch the recording of the panel discussion »

January

UC Davis telehealth leader returns from three-month project in Ireland
UC Davis Health
James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, is back in the states after spending three months in Ireland sharing best practices in pediatric telehealth. Marcin’s time overseas was sponsored by the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program.

Telehealth cuts health care’s carbon footprint and patient’s costs during pandemic
UC Davis Health
A study by UC Davis Health researchers assessed telehealth visits’ carbon footprint and their potential savings in lives, costs and time compared to in-person visits. It included data from five University of California health care systems over the pandemic’s first two years.

Two UC Davis Health faculty members among 2022 CITRIS Seed Award recipients
UC Davis Health
Two faculty members from UC Davis Health are among those who have earned a 2022 CITRIS Seed Award, which supports innovative, early-stage research in the information technology sector that has promise to attain larger-scale funding from diverse sources.

UC Davis Health faculty discusses telepresence robots at research seminar
CITRIS and the Banatao Institute
Verónica Ahumada, assistant professor at UC Davis Health, presents "Telepresence robots: Designing for an inclusive future" Jan. 18 as part of the CITRIS Research Exchange Seminar Series. Register for the Zoom session »

UC Davis Health CoLab Incubator announces first startup — WellCent
UC Davis Health
WellCent, the first startup to come out of the UC Davis Health CoLab Innovation Technology Incubator, has developed a platform to equip patients and caregivers with validated medical devices and resources, making care at home straightforward and seamless.

More news »

December

CA health system launches RPM program to reduce hospital readmissions
mHealth Intelligtence
UC Davis Health has established a remote patient monitoring program that aims to improve health outcomes and reduce re-hospitalizations among COPD patients.

Presentation: Telemedicine and pediatric emergency care
American Academy of Pediatrics
James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, gave the presentation "Telemedicine and pediatric emergency care" on December 13 sponsored by the American Academy of Pediatrics section on Emergency Medicine Pediatric Readiness Subcommittee.

November

UC Davis Health and General Catalyst announce digital medicine collaboration
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health and General Catalyst have announced a new collaboration to develop a digital transformation strategy, bolstering the prominent academic medical center’s status as one of America's leaders in digital medicine.

October

UC Davis Health earns 'most wired' recognition
UC Davis Health
For the 11th consecutive year, UC Davis Health received Digital Health Most Wired recognition from the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives.

UC Davis Children's Hospital brings advanced neonatal care to Stockton region
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Children’s Hospital has partnered with St. Joseph’s Medical Center in an effort to bring its nationally ranked neonatal care to premature babies in the Stockton region. As part of the agreement, UC Davis Health will provide access to UC Davis pediatric subspecialists for telehealth consults.

Endocrine Society experts recommend individualized approach to use of telehealth
Mirage News
A new Endocrine Society policy perspective published in The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism outlines five aspects of care that can help determine when telehealth is appropriate. Stephanie Crossen, pediatric endocrinologist and assistant professor at UC Davis Health, was one of the authors on the study.

September

ECHO Autism education program now offered in Spanish for families
UC Davis Health
ECHO Autism is an interactive program that is opening its virtual Spanish autism education program to families. It will connect MIND Institute experts with families and caregivers as well as providers, offering education via a teleconferencing platform.

Improving electronic health communication
UC Davis Health
Researchers from multiple institutions are coming together to explore how interprofessional teamwork affects the quality of patient outcomes. The researchers will focus on how information sharing occurs among interprofessional clinical team members in electronic health record systems. They hope to identify ways medical team members can more fluidly synthesize and communicate information as they coordinate care of individual patients.

August

The six best telemedicine companies of 2022 for health care from your home
MindBodyGreen
David Copenhaver, director of Pain Tele-Health Programs and professor and chief of pain medicine at UC Davis health, discusses telemedicine's benefits, which include convenience and the ability to get care when distance or driving to an appointment are barriers.

Pediatric Critical Care Colloquium set for Oct. 21-23
UC Davis Health
Physicians, nurses, advanced practice clinicians, respiratory therapists and other health care professionals are invited to attend the 27th annual Pediatric Critical Care Colloquium on Oct. 21-23. The event will be chaired by Jennifer Plant, chief of the Division of Pediatric Critical Care Medicine and professor of pediatrics and James Marcin, vice chair for pediatric clinical research, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology and professor of pediatrics.

July

New trial hopes to improve health care for women with gestational diabetes
UC Davis Health
A new UC Davis Health trial is focusing on behavioral strategies to improve health care among racially and ethnically diverse patients with gestational diabetes. The team will work with patients who receive nurse telehealth care.

June

UC Davis receives $1.7 million for digital health equity
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health will receive $1.7 million in federal funding for a Digital Health Equity Program aimed at improving access and continuity of care for vulnerable populations in Sacramento and Northern California. The program will address health disparities, especially in underrepresented minority and low-income populations, partnering with Federally Qualified Health Centers and community-based organizations.

UC Davis Health receives AAMC Telehealth Equity Catalyst Award
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health recently received a Telehealth Equity Catalyst (TEC) Award from the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) for its efforts to advance health care equity and telehealth. This year’s TEC Award was presented to Jennifer Rosenthal, associate professor of pediatrics, and collaborators Kristin Hoffman, associate professor of neonatology, and Daniel Stein, Epic telehealth supervisor at UC Davis Health. They were recognized for the innovation of UC Davis Health’s NICU Virtual Family-Centered Rounds (FCR) program and the integration of video translation services into the telehealth platform known as Extended Care.

May

Watching video feed of hospitalized baby improves pumping experience
UC Davis Health
Parents who used videoconferencing technology to view their hospitalized baby reported an improved pumping experience while expressing milk for their premature infant. Videoconferencing also helped the whole family connect to their infant in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU). These findings were published in Breastfeeding Medicine this month by Adrienne Hoyt-Austin. Study co-authors include Iesha Miller, Kara Kuhn-Riordon, Jennifer Rosenthal, Caroline Chantry, James Marcin, Kristin Hoffman and Laura Kair of UC Davis Health.

UC Davis Health offers 'Telehealth Best Practices and Uses' course
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health continues its legacy as a leader in telehealth by launching a new educational course today focused on telehealth best practices and uses. Developed in partnership with UC Davis Continuing and Professional Education and hosted on the Coursera platform, the course is designed for health care professionals and employees in organizations that practice telehealth or are aspiring to work within the field. The course is available to everyone and complimentary for UC Davis employees.

The digital front door: Why it's so important in healthcare
Becker's Hospital Review
In a webinar held in April hosted by Becker's Hospital Review and sponsored by InterSystems, Michael Marchant, director of system integration and health information exchange at UC Davis Health, discussed the importance of a digital front door and UC Davis Health's application of this technology.

ATA2022: Tips to reduce clinician burnout and improve the patient experience
HealthTech Magazine
Peter Yellowlees, professor of psychiatry and chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health, discusses the use of a peer responder system at UC Davis Health that has trained 600 nurses, doctors, pharmacists and other staff to listen and offer to support to those who need it. This helps reduce clinician burnout.

UC Davis Health announces collaboration to advance remote care options
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health has announced a new collaboration with BioIntelliSense that advances remote patient monitoring of vital signs across care settings. The effort will involve the FDA-cleared BioIntelliSense wearable technology and algorithmic-based BioCloud™ data analytics.

April

UC Davis telehealth leader selected as Fulbright U.S. Scholar
UC Davis Health
James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, vice chair for pediatric clinical research and professor of pediatrics, has been selected as a Fulbright U.S. Scholar for 2022-2023. Marcin will work with the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland and Children's Health Ireland to advance pediatric health care in Ireland as a new children’s hospital integrates novel telehealth and digital health technologies.

UC Davis researcher featured by Future Investment Initiative Institute
Future Investment Initiative Institute
Verónica Ahumada-Newhart, a heath informatics and human-robot interaction specialist at the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, discuses the use of telerobots in hospitals in the Future Investment Initiative Institute's "Robotics Impact 2022" report.

UC Davis telehealth leader receives Long COVID SEED Grant
UC Davis Health
Mark Avdalovic, medical director for virtual visits and eConsults, professor and vice chair for the Department of Internal Medicine at UC Davis Health, received a Long COVID SEED Grant from the UC Davis School of Medicine. Avdalovic and his team are working to develop and validate a portable, rapid, accurate and cost effective breath diagnostic device for Long COVID.

The doctor will see you now
Comstock's Magazine
A physician with ties to Thomas Nesbitt, the father of telehealth in California and founding director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, discusses the state of telehealth after the surges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the future of health care.

Teleconferencing programs seeks to improve autism care in underserved areas
UC Davis Health
An ECHO Autism teleconferencing program at the UC Davis MIND Institute uses an interdisciplinary model to connect experts and providers so they can share knowledge widely and improve patient care. This is especially important in areas where specialists are hard for families to access. The virtual model helps to increase accessibility by increasing the number of providers who are knowledgeable about autism care. It also helps reduce barriers that providers themselves face in getting the training they need.

March

Increasing access to health care by investing in telehealth
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health is looking to the future of health care and expanding access to telehealth visits to reach more patients in more places. The health care organization estimates 19% of its patient visits will be done via telehealth this year and has launched five new telehealth initiatives.

Barton Health and UC Davis Health expand partnership to improve trauma care for children
UC Davis Health
Barton Memorial Hospitals is participating in an ongoing clinical trial led by UC Davis Health, which aims to improve trauma care for children in the region. The study was designed for pediatric trauma patients who require a transfer to a higher level of care. Prior to transfer, a virtual connection via telehealth is established with the team at UC Davis Health to allow greater communication with patients and their families and to facilitate communication between medical teams. The clinical trial evaluates the added value of a pre-transfer telehealth visit for patients and their families.

Why the latest federal spending bill matters to digital health equity
Modern Healthcare
Joshua Elder, medical director of Express Care at UC Davis Health, shares his views on the March 15 spending bill signed by President Joe Biden, which includes the creation of a Digital Health Equity Program. 

Then along came COVID: An opportunity to reimagine healthcare delivery
Healthcare Tech Outlook
James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, discusses the need for an improved consumer experience when it comes to health care. He also discusses the opportunities to reimagine health care delivery on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic to be make it more patient-centered.

Robot researcher receives EDGE in Tech Initiative Athena Award
UC Davis Health
Verónica Ahumada-Newhart, a heath informatics and human-robot interaction specialist at the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, was honored with the Early Career Award at the 2022 EDGE in Tech Initiative Athena Awards. She is one of four recipients of the 2022 EDGE in Tech Initiative Athena Awards from the Expanding Diversity and Gender Equity in Tech (EDGE in Tech) Initiative at the University of California. The awardees exemplify the goals of EDGE in Tech: to recognize those who embody, encourage and promote people who identify as women and people of color in technology. Ahumada-Newhart received the Early Career Award for interdisciplinary contributions to the field of human-robot interaction include the co-creation of improved robot design and best practices guidelines for human-robot interactions. 

Telehealth Virtual Forum features UC Davis Health physician
Becker's Healthcare
James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, was a featured speaker at the Telehealth Virtual Forum on March 10 hosted by Becker's Healthcare. Marcin served as a speaker on the "Website Manner: Tips for Effective Communication and Patient Engagement Through Telehealth" panel discussion.

$2.7M for Digital Health Equity and Future Pandemic Preparedness
UC Davis
The University of California, Davis, will receive $2.7 million for two projects that advance digital health equity and future pandemic preparedness following the passage of federal spending legislation. The projects include $1.7 million for UC Davis Health’s Digital Health Equity Program and $1 million to help UC Davis establish a Future Pandemic Prevention and Rapid Response Institute.

How UC Davis is transforming the digital health narrative for patients
VentureBeat
UC Davis Health is transforming the way that consumers interact with health care providers and manage their own care through digital self-service methods. Through a digital front door, digital navigation and digital monitoring, patients are able to do everything from make appointments to use artificial intelligence tools to monitor their health. Efforts are being made to close the digital divide and bring care to senior and underrepresented patients.

Call for abstracts for international telehealth conference in Denmark
Transatlantic Telehealth Research Network 
The Transatlantic Telehealth Research Network is issuing a call for abstracts for its Aug. 29-30 international conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. This year's conference topic is “Digital Health Beyond COVD-19: Lessons Learned." Heather M. Young, dean emerita of the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing at UC Davis, is a member of the conference's scientific committee. Deadline for submission of abstracts for oral or posters presentation is May 1.

UC Davis Health seeks Digital Health Equity Manager for the Center for Health and Technology
UC Davis Health
The Center for Health and Technology at UC Davis Health is recruiting for a Digital Health Equity Manager, who will collaborate with faculty and administrators to design and implement a comprehensive strategy that evaluates the challenges and inequities that exist within underserved and vulnerable patient populations in the telehealth and connected health realm. To view full job description and submit an online application visit UC Davis Career Opportunities and reference Job ID #31676. Application deadline is March 26.

February

Study on the effectiveness of telemedicine shows that limited English proficient, medically compromised patients face barriers
Newswise
A study led by a researcher at the University of California, Irvine, shows that limited English proficient, medically underserved patients face several language and socioeconomic barriers that compromise the effectiveness of telehealth. Lorena Garcia, DrPH from the Department of Public Health at the UC Davis School of Medicine, was part of the research team.

Dream machine
Science Magazine
Verónica Ahumada-Newhart, a heath informatics and human-robot interaction specialist at the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, uses robots to help seriously ill students attend school virtually. Her research with these telepresence robots seeks to overcome obstacles and figure out the best ways to integrate these machines into classroom environments.

Colleges struggle to recruit therapists for students in crisis
Kasier Health News
Amid a nationwide shortage of mental health professionals, universities are competing with hospitals, private practices and the telehealth industry to get college students the care they need. At the University of California, Davis students can access mental health services via Zoom, but more counselors are needed to meet the vast demand, and other universities across the country are struggling to meet the demand, too. 

January

New study finds combination of telemedicine, in-person visits best fit for asthma care
UC Davis Health
Researchers at UC Davis Health found that using telehealth with asthma patients can minimize health disparities, maximize the patient experience and increase access to care. The study published in the Journal of Asthma is the first study to evaluate provider-to-patient telemedicine use for asthma care among children and young adults.

UC Davis researcher wins 2022 EDGE in Tech Athena Award
CITRIS and the Banatao Institute
Verónica Ahumada-Newhart, a heath informatics and human-robot interaction specialist at the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, is one of four recipients of the 2022 EDGE in Tech Athena Award from the Expanding Diversity and Gender Equity in Tech (EDGE in Tech) Initiative at the University of California. The awardees exemplify the goals of EDGE in Tech: to recognize those who embody, encourage and promote people who identify as women and people of color in technology. Ahumada-Newhart received the Early Career Award for interdisciplinary contributions to the field of human-robot interaction include the co-creation of improved robot design and best practices guidelines for human-robot interactions. 

Using technology to redefine the new normal for aging
UC Davis In Greater Focus Magazine
The Healthy Aging in a Digital World initiative is working on a number of innovative technologies to advance wellness, enhance independence and reduce the personal and societal challenges of aging. Innovations include the Interactive Care Platform, or I-CARE, which connects older adults with cognitive impairment to their family members who live apart from them, the Walking in the Living Domain (WILD) innovation, which aims to reduce falls by using markerless motion capture technology to enable comprehensive 3D gait analysis, and the Smart Home Platform for Aging Well, which uses smart speakers with an artificial intelligence assistant to connect older adults to their health care team.

Artificial intelligence for telehealth and the latest in health tech at Consumer Electronics Show
STAT
A growing number of telehealth companies are hoping automation — whether it’s text-based chatbots, questionnaires or follow-ups — could help trim telehealth costs and treat more patients with fewer resources. Peter Yellowlees, professor of psychiatry and chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health, warns there are risks to an overreliance on automation, including sidelining patients who don't speak English or can't navigate technology.

More news »

December

Study reveals how telehealth can be utilized to bridge gap between early social communication development differences and autism diagnosis
The California Aggie
In 2019, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute began researching how infants with early social communication delays develop and how researchers can support families looking for resources related to their infants’ early development. When the pandemic began, researchers pivoted to telehealth to reach more families and became extremely successful.

More than 200 UC Davis Health physicians named 'Top Docs'
Sacramento Magazine
An impressive number of UC Davis Health physicians — 224 in all — were listed among the Sacramento region's best doctors in the latest issue of Sacramento Magazine. The list includes numerous honorees, such as James Marcin, director of the Center for Health and Technology, and Mark Avdalovic, medical director for virtual visits and eConsults, as well as many other telehealth champions and research collaborators.

November

New initiative to make UC Davis Health a leader in digital medicine
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health has launched a Cloud Innovation Center (CIC), powered by Amazon Web Services, focused on digital health equity. The UC Davis Health CIC will allow clinicians, patients, developers, and students to exchange ideas, as well as design and prototype solutions focused on making digital health more equitable and accessible worldwide. The CIC is the latest initiative from UC Davis Health to advance digital medicine through its Digital CoLab (Digital Collaborative for Innovation and Validation). 

New approach may expand access to autism treatment studies
Roseville Today
New research from the UC Davis MIND Institute suggests that parent-led testing delivered via telehealth may help reduce inequities in access to autism research. The pilot study, published Nov. 18 in Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences, examined the feasibility of teaching native English and native Spanish-speaking parents to administer an Expressive Language Sampling (ELS) task to their sons and daughters with autism at home. The goal was to determine the effectiveness of ELS as an outcome measure, or a way of assessing treatments.

UC Davis Health wins first-place award at national telehealth symposium
UC Davis Health
Researchers at UC Davis Health garnered the Judge’s Award for Best Oral Abstract Presentation at the SEARCH 2021 National Telehealth Research Symposium. The abstract focused on UC Davis Health’s creation of a Virtual Pediatric Trauma Center (VPTC) that uses videoconferencing and image sharing technology to care for injured children at hospital emergency departments across California.

Home-based research format may expand access to autism treatment studies
UC Davis Health
New research from the UC Davis MIND Institute suggests that parent-led testing delivered via telehealth may help reduce inequities in access to autism research. The pilot study, published Nov. 18 in Frontiers in Rehabilitation Sciences, examined the feasibility of teaching native English and native Spanish-speaking parents to administer an Expressive Language Sampling (ELS) task to their sons and daughters with autism at home. The goal was to determine the effectiveness of ELS as an outcome measure, or a way of assessing treatments.

Sacramento's newest science center unveiled, includes UC Davis technology
UC Davis Health
Sacramento’s newest science center, the SMUD Museum of Science and Curiosity (MOSAC), includes technology from UC Davis Health and highlights examples of the powerful technology used in medicine, breakthrough scientific research, and detailed understanding of public health programs and the health care system.

Winds of change: Some pandemic lessons may prompt permanent societal changes — across many areas of life
UC Davis Magazine
While smaller clinics struggled to find a way to conduct video calls at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, UC Davis Health was already a leader in telehealth — especially at the Children’s Hospital. James Marcin, a professor of pediatric critical care and director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, discusses the use and convenience of telehealth and how the pandemic caused everyone to reimagine how care is delivered.

Innovation technology and UC Davis CoLab: Leading by collaboration
MedTech Outlook
Ashish Atreja, chief information and digital health officer at UC Davis Health, discusses the Digital Davis Innovation and Validation Collaborative (Davis CoLab), which will function as the front door for internal and external collaborations. The Davis CoLab will provide structure for industry, startups, biopharma, other health system and payer to collaborate with UC Davis Health.

October

STARS offers specialized telehealth services to kids with disabilities in rural areas
UC Davis Health
The tele-physiatry program at UC Davis Health provides high-quality care to children with special health care needs in underserved communities. A recent study published in the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation found that the School-Based Tele-Physiatry Assistance for Rehabilitative and Therapeutic Services (STARS) program can provide parents and providers with the same perceived quality of care as in-person encounters. It is also more economical, offering a savings of about $100 per visit.

Study suggests telehealth screening of some infants could aid in early autism support
UC Davis Health
New UC Davis MIND Institute research suggests that telehealth evaluation could help improve access to care for infants with an elevated likelihood of autism. The study, published recently in Autism, found that telehealth approaches in the first year of life could help families facing barriers to care such as geographic distance and long waitlists and aid in early diagnosis and intervention.

UC Davis Health earns 'Most Wired' recognized for 10th year in a row
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health has been recognized as one of the best health care organizations in the nation for effectively using technology to improve the delivery of care, according to the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME). For the 10th consecutive year, UC Davis Health has been recognized as a level 9 out of a possible 10 in the 2021 Digital Health "Most Wired" program. It assesses how effectively healthcare organizations apply core and advanced technologies to their clinical and business programs to improve health and care in their communities.

September

Telehealth may increase access to mental health providers
WESA-FM
Peter Yellowlees, a professor of psychiatry and chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health, spoke with the WESA-FM radio station in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania about the rising prominence of telehealth use in mental health care. Patients can do econsultations or record videos of themselves talking about how they are doing and send them to their provider, which eliminates no-show appointments and allows providers to see more patients.

UC Davis Health wins two golds for IT innovation
UC Davis Health
Two Golden Awards were given to UC Davis Health through the UC’s Larry L. Sautter Awards Program for Innovation in Information Technology. One gold went to Information and Educational Technology’s Client Success unit for its Service Hub upgrades focused on customer experience, and the other went to UC Davis Health’s Data Provisioning Core in IT Health Informatics for its implementation of the cBioPortal for Cancer Genomics that is soon to be available as a shared system for all of UC Health.

Veronica Ahumada brings human-robot interaction expertise to UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health
Veronica Ahumada joined UC Davis Health this year, bringing her expertise in health informatics and human-robot interaction to the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology. She is growing her research through two exciting grant-funded projects involving robots.

Collaborative retinal imaging programs improve care for patients with diabetes
Healio
Jonathon Michael Ross, optometrist at UC Davis Health, discusses the use of telehealth in optometry and ophthalmology, particularly in the last 18 months of the COVID-19 pandemic. He discusses the use of image-based screenings for diabetic patients and how it has resulted in better, more efficient care thanks to easily-accessible screenings at primary care and endocrinology offices.

August

Electronic health systems deployed during COVID-19 help halt Hep B
UC Davis Health
Proactively using electronic health records during the pandemic, together with bilingual and bicultural outreach, increased hepatitis B virus (HBV) screenings of underserved populations. As a result of early adoption of telehealth services at the Health and Life Organization (HALO), completion of HBV testing among local Asian American pregnant women has remained only slightly below pre-pandemic levels. The testing of high-risk patients (non-pregnant Asian Americans) actually led to a large increase in the number of tests completed during the pandemic and a rise in HBV cases detected.

UC Davis Health launches digital health formulary starting with HealthPROMISE app that allows IBD patients to track their symptoms
UC Davis Health
As part of a collaborative National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant, gastroenterologists at UC Davis Health can now "prescribe" a mobile health application called HealthPROMISE for inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients that helps them track their symptoms and provides access educational content. Data entered into the app is sent back to a patient's electronic health record, where it can be reviewed by the patient's medical provider.

Removing regulations improves lives
The Register-Herald
A guest column in "The Register Herald" in West Virginia discusses how loosening restrictions on the delivery of telehealth has been extremely beneficial during the COVID-19 pandemic. The column cites a UC Davis Health study which found that, between 1996 and 2013, remote care saved patients nine years of travel time, 5 million miles and $3 million in costs. See the column, which also appeared in "The Exponent Telegram" »

July

Study measures the impact of telehealth on the environment
mHealthIntelligence
A five-year analysis of outpatient visits at a Pacific Northwest health system found that a shift to telehealth helped to dramatically reduce the amount of greenhouse gas emissions. A previous study by UC Davis Health found that its telehealth program saved nearly 2,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide, 50 metric tons of carbon monoxide, 3.7 metric tons of nitrogen oxides and 5.5 metric tons of volatile organic compounds.

June

Long-standing genomic medicine partnership expands specialty care for children in region
UC Davis Health
A telemedicine program called TeleGenomics allows the UC Davis MIND Institute's genomic medicine specialists to connect with Dignity Health patients at Mercy San Juan and Methodist Hospital of Sacramento to provide round-the-clock genomic medicine consultations.

Study targets benefits of asynchronous telehealth for mental health care
mHealthIntelligence
Researchers at UC Davis Health say an asynchronous (store-and-forward) telehealth platform can be just as effective as an audio-visual platform in providing non-urgent telemental health services. 

May

KVIE to feature UC Davis Health telehealth in new documentary
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health’s pioneering work in telehealth, and its exponential increase in use during the pandemic, will be in the spotlight early next month on KVIE-TV. "Healing from Home — Telehealth" is scheduled to air Wednesday, June 2 at 7:30 p.m.

Could Telemedicine Help Combat Climate Change? Some Doctors Say Yes
CBS Sacramento
Colleen McCormick, UC Davis’ director of sustainability, Peter Yellowlees, a UC Davis Health psychiatrist, and James Marcin, director of the Center for Health and Technology, and a telemedicine expert, discuss how virtual visits can reduce carbon emissions.

UC Davis Mind Institute transitions to virtual therapy sessions in study to treat anxiety in children with autism
The California Aggie
Autistic children in the Specifying and Treating Anxiety in Autism Research (STAAR) study undergo weekly virtual therapy sessions using cognitive behavioral therapy techniques to treat anxiety — and the results using this online therapy are positive.

Inpatients get easy access to health resources with MyUCDavisHealth Bedside
UC Davis Health
A free app that's designed for patients to use while they are hospitalized will soon be launched at UC Davis Medical Center. The app allows patients to view their diagnoses, as well as see how the care team is managing their treatment and care.

Another benefit for telehealth: it's good for the environment
mHealthIntelligence
Amplifying the results of a previous study at UC Davis Health, one of the nation's largest health systems has found that its telehealth platform is not only helping patients and providers, but reducing greenhouse gas emissions and saving trees.

April

Telemedicine came to the rescue during COVID-19 — could it help climate change too?
MobiHealthNews
The health care industry is one of the top carbon-emitting sectors in the world. Telemedicine allows patients to be treated from the comfort of their own homes and poses a method for reducing health care's carbon footprint.

Connected Care
Comstock's Magazine
Telehealth is a convenient, flexible and time-saving way for patients to meet with their physicians — just look at what UC Davis Health has accomplished. In 2019, UC Davis Health held 1,200 video visits. In 2020, it conducted 132, 400 video visits.

New remote patient-care technology assists patients using neuromodulation therapy
UC Davis Health
The Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) program at UC Davis Health has a new remote patient care system for patients receiving neuromodulation therapy for movement disorders. The NeuroSpace virtual clinic provides a more comprehensive appointment, allowing physicians to prescribe new treatment settings for DBS devices.

Webinar: Bringing telehealth services to vulnerable Central Valley residents
UC Davis Health
In this webinar, Associate Professor Kathy Kim discusses a program for reaching vulnerable populations with essential telehealth services that can be scaled and adopted to improve health systems in communities statewide and nationally. The ACTIVATE — Accountability, Coordination and Telehealth in the Valley to Achieve Transformation and Equity —program aims to improve the health and well-being of rural, agricultural communities through the use of telehealth. Presentation is via Zoom from noon-1 p.m. PDT May 13.

Webinar: UC Davis professor discusses use of telerobots during pandemic
La Plaza de Cultura y Artes
What if robots could provide quarantined Californians a safe way to connect outside their homes, not only for health care visits but to also enjoy cultural activities? Dr. Véronica Ahumada, assistant professor of Health Informatics and Human-Robot Interaction at UC Davis Health, shares her story of growing up in San Gabriel, her work in health care that led to research in telerobots, and how she supports Latinos in STEM education via a campus-wide event she founded at University of California, Irvine. Presentation is via Zoom at 7 p.m. PDT April 21.

March

UC Davis Health executive talks cybersecurity at Becker's Telehealth Forum
Becker's Healthcare
Jeffery Wajda, UC Davis Health Chief Medical Information Officer, participated in the Becker's Telehealth 2021 Virtual Forum and spoke as part of a panel on the challenges arising from virtual care expansion, including increased cybersecurity protocols, ensuring underserved patient populations have the necessary devices and broadband access to connect with providers virtually, and balancing health care delivery preferences for different generations. The session was recorded and can be viewed on demand.

How a student-run clinic helps low-tech patients during COVID-19
American Medical Association
UC Davis medical students opted to open one centralized clinic to see patients in-person and have all the other 12 student-run clinics operate using telehealth. This allowed those patients without the means to connect online or by phone to be seen. It also consolidated the medical student workforce and personal protective equipment.

The rise of telehealth and its impact on the healthcare industry
The California Aggie
Health care practitioners from Sacramento and Yolo counties share their thoughts on the explosion of telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

UC Davis Health CEO: Virus highlighted the need for telehealth, frontline workers
Fox 40 News
David Lubarsky, UC Davis Health CEO, said telehealth is something that will last and most likely expand after the pandemic is over — especially to help those in rural areas, as well as seniors and disabled patients.

Health care panel discusses accessibility, innovation in telehealth
The Daily Californian
Katherine Kim, associate professor at the UC Davis Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing and the UC Davis School of Medicine, presented at the forum, discussing solutions for equity when serving rural and underserved people using digital health.

February

Health systems eye EHR-based telehealth toolkit for IBD treatment
mHealthIntelligence
UC Davis Health is among four health systems across the country that are working together to develop and EHR toolkit that would allow providers to use telehealth and mhealth tools to help treat patients living with inflammatory bowel disease.

Virtual autism teleconferencing program for providers now offered in Spanish
UC Davis Health
The UC Davis MIND Institute's interactive teleconferencing program for providers caring for people with autism, called ECHO Autism, is expanding to offer a Spanish language program.

Ten tips for using telehealth in diabetes care
UC Davis Health
Experts at UC Davis Health have created a "how-to" guide for using technology to help doctors and their diabetic patients control symptoms of the disease and avoid its complications. UC Davis Health pediatric endocrinologist Stephanie Crossen regularly uses video visits to check in with patients and their families between office visits.

January

Telemedicine sounds great, but there are barriers, too
Side Effects Public Health Personal Stories
The coronavirus has dramatically changed the way Americans get medical care, but some virtual options remain out of reach for vulnerable populations. James Marcin, director of the Center for Health and Technology, said studies have shown that older people are less likely to use video.

Outreach to vulnerable populations key to studying the impact of COVID-19 on cancer prevention 
UC Davis Health
The UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center is collaborating with 17 other cancer centers to study the impact COVID-19 is having on cancer prevention. The study is the first of its kind and will allow the outreach and engagement team and clinicians to better tailor how they communicate and partner with these vulnerable populations to enhance trust and better serve them. The study team is conducting focus groups to better understand how to enhance video visits for cancer care.

More news »

November 2020

Top Doctors for 2020 includes telehealth leaders
Sacramento Magazine
An impressive number of UC Davis Health physicians — 240 in all — were listed among the Sacramento region's best doctors in the December 2020 issue of Sacramento Magazine. The list includes numerous honorees, such as James Marcin, M.D., director of the Center for Health and Technology, and Mark Avdalovic, M.D., medical director for virtual visits and eConsults.  

40 Under 40 honoree at UC Davis Health leads telehealth outreach
Sacramento Business Journal
Khanh-Nhat Tran-Viet, director of community hospital partnerships and affiliations at UC Davis Health, was named a 40 Under 40 honoree by the Sacramento Business Journal. He recently led, negotiated and implemented a telehealth service for UC Davis Health's community hospital partner in Lodi, which was severely impacted by COVID-19.

Telehealth strategy for the next 5 years: 2 IT execs discuss
Becker's Hospital Review
At the Becker's Healthcare Telehealth Virtual Forum on Nov. 2, IT leaders from University of California systems gathered to discuss hospital strategy for telehealth and remote patient monitoring over the next five years. The panel included Jeff Wajda, D.O., chief medical information officer at UC Davis Health.

October 2020

UC Davis Health contract with Bear River Land Holdings, LLC will fund a new report examining the current academic research and state-of-the-art technology for designing age-friendly communities
UC Davis Health
Bear River Land Holdings, LLC has selected UC Davis Health to write a report on the current academic research and industry best practices for designing technology-driven communities that support the unique needs of older adults and adults with disabilities.

NICU webcam program positively impacts parents, study finds
UC Davis Health
NICU parents feel more involved in their infant’s care, more likely to provide breastmilk to their baby when they can watch their child in the NICU, thanks to a webcam.

UC Davis Health earns 'Most Wired' recognition for ninth year in a row
UC Davis Health
Decades of experience and preparation in telehealth helped UC Davis Health earn a level 9 out of a possible 10 in the 2020 Digital Health "Most Wired" program from the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives.

Feeling anxious? Why online therapy might work better than an office visit
CNET
Peter Yellowlees, M.D., a professor of psychiatry and chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health, discusses why telehealth for mental health is better for patients and doctors, pandemic or not.

September 2020

COVID-19 has brought out a need for telemedicine
PatientDaily
Peter Yellowlees, M.D., a professor of psychiatry and chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health, discusses the importance of telemedicine during the pandemic.

Virtual visits
Sacramento Magazine
In the wake of COVID-19, telehealth is gaining in popularity more rapidly than even its pioneers, supporters and pilot programs could have predicted. Mark Avdalovic, M.D., medical director of virtual visits and eConsults at UC Davis Health provides perspective.

ACTIVATE will bring telehealth services to vulnerable, at-risk residents of California's Central Valley
UC Davis Health
A new public-private pilot initiative will bring telehealth services to underserved rural residents to reach populations who are vulnerable to the worst outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic with the technology, skills and connections they need to access and utilize health care services.

August 2020

The psychiatrist will see you online now
The New York Times
Experts have long predicted that psychotherapy was poised to go virtual. The pandemic may prove them right. Peter Yellowlees, M.D., a professor of psychiatry and chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health, discusses the benefits of telehealth.

Webcam program in NICU receives UCOP award for tech innovation
UC Davis Health
A program that allows parents and families to see their babies via webcams in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at UC Davis Children’s Hospital received an award this month from the UC Office of the President (UCOP) for its innovative use of technology.

Pilot program will bring telehealth, internet access to affordable senior housing communities
McKnight's Senior Living
A public-private initiative is testing a project to bring technology-enabled health and well-being care to low-income older adults in California. The initiative is headed by the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) at the University of California's “Lighthouse for Older Adults” program. The project is a partnership with CDW Healthcare, Decimal.health and the Healthy Aging in a Digital World initiative at UC Davis Health. 
See the PR Newswire article »

Healthcare looks to telehealth to address physician burnout, stress
mHealthIntelligence
In an industry plagued by burnout, hospitals and health systems are using telehealth to give providers virtual access to mental health counselors. Peter Yellowlees, M.D., a professor of psychiatry and chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health, spearheaded this effort in 2019 and it has only grown to be a more important issue during the coronavirus pandemic.

UC Davis Health provider participates in telehealth for pediatric gastroenterology webinar
North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (NASPGHAN)
Daphne Say, health sciences assistant clinical professor and pediatric gastroenterologist at UC Davis Health, participated in the June NASPGHAN webinar and provided lecture information about video visits.

UC Davis Health, Adventist Health Lodi Memorial launch telehealth ICU services
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health and Adventist Health Lodi Memorial have launched the Lodi hospital's first telehealth intensive care unit to provide a link between clinicals at each hospital and enhance round-the-clock care for patients.
See Recordnet article »
See Becker's Hospital Review article »

Medical Interpreting launches on-demand video services to increase access, eliminate patient care delays
UC Davis Health
Medical Interpreting Services at UC Davis Health launched an on-demand video service at the hospital in July with plans to expand to ambulatory clinics later in the year. This program enables providers to quickly connect to video interpreting services in more than 200 languages, including American Sign Language.

Telehealth faculty collaborator Stephanie Crossen receives 2020 Eli Gold Prize
UC Davis Health
Stephanie Crossen, assistant professor of pediatrics and pediatric endocrinologist, received the 2020 Eli Gold Prize for persevering in her diabetes and telehealth research while also managing a large clinical and teaching workload. The $3,000 award goes toward her research or to further her career development.

New IT Education video site covers telehealth etiquette tips, audio troubleshooting, interpreter services and more
UC Davis Health
IT Education at UC Davis Health has created a new microlearning site with videos for providers that are focused on telehealth tools and etiquette, Epic and Haiku/Canto tips, new applications and troubleshooting common issues.

Telehealth effective in addressing rural cancer care disparities
Cancer Network
Researchers examined the effectiveness of telehealth in addressing rural-urban disparities in cancer care by establishing and analyzing synaptic knowledge networks presented at the 2020 ASCO Virtual Scientific Program.

June 2020

Shift to virtual health education classes makes it more convenient for busy patients to participate
UC Davis Health
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, UC Davis Health's Health Management and Education classes, which range from diabetes management to pain and stress management, have shifted from the traditional, in-person model to new virtual offerings.

UC Davis Health provides telehealth services to 14 counties in new Partnership HealthPlan of California Affiliation
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health has entered into a new agreement to provide pediatric telehealth services to the 14 Northern California counties that Partnership HealthPlan of California serves. PHC is a nonprofit, community-based, public health care organization that contracts with the State of California to administer Medi-Cal benefits through local care providers.

Insights from a successful conversion of an outpatient psychiatry clinic to telemedicine during COVID-19
Psychiatry Advisor
UC Davis Health clinicians at an outpatient psychiatric clinic describe the process of converting their entire practice to a virtual environment and how others may be able to do the same.

17 researchers win COVID-19 seed grants, including telehealth studies
UC Davis Health
UC Davis researchers have a role in nine of the 25 COVID-19-related projects that recently received seed grants averaging about $50,000 from CITRIS and the Banatao Institute, a systemwide UC initiative headquartered at Berkeley. Two of the projects include a telehealth component.

Crossen leads telehealth how-to videos for Pediatric Endocrine Society
UC Davis Health
Stephanie Crossen, assistant professor of pediatrics and pediatric endocrinologist, created how-to videos for health care providers focused on the common challenges and questions that providers face when using telehealth.

UC Davis Health adapting from lessons of telehealth
UC Davis Health
One of the lasting impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic and stay-at-home orders on health care was a rapid and massive shift to care for patients via video visits. On March 4, UC Davis Health had just 23 telehealth visits between providers and patients. Four weeks later, on April 1, health system providers conducted 1,054 visits via video, and for the entire month averaged nearly 1,100 a day.

May 2020

APA, others lobby to make COVID-19 telehealth waivers permanent
Medscape
The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is calling on Congress to permanently lift restrictions that have allowed unfettered delivery of telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic, which experts say has been a boon to patients and physicians alike. Article includes comment from UC Davis Health's own Dr. Peter Yellowlees.

UC Davis student-run clinics transition to telehealth for duration of pandemic
The California Aggie
UC Davis medical students, physicians and undergraduates are using telehealth to continue providing primary care services to patients through the seven student-run clinics amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Free telepsychiatry webinar: Prepare your practice for COVID and beyond
Psychiatric Times
The Psychiatric Times is hosting a free webinar at 7 p.m. Eastern Daylight Time on May 18 in which participants can learn tips from leading psychiatrists on how to make telepsychiatry work for them and their patients. Dr. Peter Yellowlees, chief wellness officer at UC Davis Health and professor of General Psychiatry, is one of the webinar presenters.

Integration of interpreting services into video visit program shows commitment to health equity, diversity and inclusion
UC Davis Health
With more patient interactions occurring online due to the coronavirus pandemic and a dramatic increase in video visits, a need for virtual interpreting also arose at UC Davis Health. In a partnership between IT and ambulatory clinic leadership and staff, Medical Interpreting Services (MIS) were incorporated quickly and seamlessly into the video visit experience.

Telemedicine connects a family during COVID-19 care
UC Davis Health
The new virtual visit program puts UC Davis Health's telemedicine system to work by allowing patients to connect with their loved ones and care teams via videoconference.

April 2020

Telehealth is booming during coronavirus crisis
KQED
California doctors are diagnosing anything from appendicitis to strep throat with only a phone during the coronavirus pandemic. UC Davis Health's very own Mark Henderson, M.D., weighs in.

Virtual medical visits are the new normal during the coronavirus pandemic
CalMatters
California's stay-at-home order to slow the coronavirus has significantly accelerated the use of telehealth visits. UC Davis health expanded its telehealth capacity as a way to check in with those who might be infected.

UC Davis helps community health clinic purchase telemedicine equipment during pandemic
UC Davis Health
Thanks to UC Davis Health, the Health and Life Organization (HALO) in Sacramento has secured a $20,000 grant from the Bristol Meyers Squibb Foundation to purchase much-needed telemedicine equipment to care for patients during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

MIND Institute provides care through telehealth
UC Davis Health
Not even COVID-19 can stop MIND Institute providers from delivering much-needed care to their patients with neurodevelopmental disabilities. Fortuitously, clinic providers started offering telehealth care services a year ago to their patients, especially those who live far away or with limited transportation options. This service has been especially helpful during the stay-at-home order related to the novel coronavirus pandemic.

March 2020

Home-based video visits improve glycemic control among pediatric type 1 diabetes patients
UC Davis Health
A study focused on making care for pediatric type 1 diabetes patients more frequent and more accessible has shown that by providing in-home telehealth visits as a supplement to care received in the clinic, researchers were able to significantly improve glucose control for children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes.

Make your next UC Davis Health medical appointment a Video Visit
UC Davis Health
Using a smartphone or tablet, Video Visits are the easy way to see a clinician at UC Davis Health. For many types of routine and specialty care visits, this virtual encounter is a great alternative to the traditional in-person appointment. All you need is the MyUCDavisHealth app, which is a free download, and a secure Wi-Fi connection. 

February 2020

UC Davis Health expands neonatology services at Adventist Health and Rideout’s NICU
UC Davis Health
A new partnership with Adventist Health and Rideout (AHRO) expands neonatology services at AHRO's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU), bringing the world-class care of UC Davis Health to the Marysville area. UC Davis Health neonatologists are now on site for critically ill and premature babies, and a 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week instant connection to UC Davis pediatric specialists has been established.

Using telehealth to tackle provider stress, burnout
mHealth Intelligence
Provider stress and burnout rates are alarmingly high in the health care industry, but mHealth and telehealth provide opportunities to improve provider well-being. Peter Yellowlees, M.D., a professor of psychiatry and Chief Wellness Officer at UC Davis Health, is quoted about this issue in an article about Providence Health System in Washington. The health system is launching a telehealth service to give care providers access to mental health professionals to treat stress.

January 2020

UC Davis Children's Hospital gets funds for pediatric trauma care telehealth study
UC Davis Health
A research team led by UC Davis Center for Health and Technology director and Pediatric Clinical Research vice chair James Marcin has been approved for a $4,199,464 funding award by the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI). The study will compare the current standard of pediatric trauma care with the virtual pediatric trauma center model, which utilizes telehealth and videoconferencing technology.

CITRIS Seed Funding Program accepting 2020 applications
CITRIS and the Banato Institute
Principal Investigators at UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Davis Health, UC Merced, and UC Santa Cruz campuses are invited to apply for seed funding that furthers CITRIS and the Banatao Institute research initiatives, strengthens connections among UC campuses, and catalyzes early-stage research that can lead to external funding.

Telehealth delivers access to care and cutting-edge clinical research to rural areas
Targeted Oncology
The present and future benefits of telehealth in oncology can be observed through Tahoe For­est Cancer Center and its affiliation with the UC Davis Cancer Center. The center participates in virtual tumor boards hosted by UC Davis and is thus able to enroll patients in clinical trials faster and more efficiently.

Video visits bring ease, convenience to patients at UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health
The video visit program at UC Davis Health was developed over the past three years as a pilot project, originally funded by an innovation grant. Now video visits are used systemwide, making it possible for patients to see and talk with their provider through their mobile device (e.g., smartphone or tablet). 

December 2019

Telehealth Leaders Named 'Top Docs' by Sacramento Magazine
UC Davis Health
Dr. James Marcin, director of the UC Davis Center for Health and Technology, and more than 200 other UC Davis Health physicians are listed among the region’s best doctors in the December issue of Sacramento Magazine. Many of the physicians listed actively provide telehealth consultations.

November 2019

PRIME Graduates are Now Physicians in Underserved Areas
UC Davis Health
More than 150 UC Davis School of Medicine PRIME graduates over the past decade are transforming the physician workforce in medically underserved cities and towns. The Rural-PRIME program has students participate in 6-week rotations in rural settings and receive additional training on the use of telehealth and simulation.

All NICU Beds Now Have Webcams at UC Davis Children's Hospital
KCRA 3
UC Davis Children's Hospital is expanding access to its webcams in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Every NICU bed is now set up with a webcam so parents can stay close to their babies, even if it is virtually.

Constantly Connected: A Webcam for Every NICU Bed
UC Davis Health
Every Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) bed at UC Davis Children’s Hospital is now set up with a webcam. This allows parents and families to see their baby through a secure connection from a home computer, tablet or cellphone 24/7, even when they are not at the bedside.

How Leaders are Working to Improve Patient Experience
Becker's Hospital Review
To keep loyal patients, hospital leaders are evaluating strategies to improve patient experiences. That includes using telehealth technology. Consumers are driving the integration of telehealth, which includes virtual care, direct-to-consumer products and remote patient monitoring. However, "telehealth is health care," says David Lubarsky CEO of UC Davis Health.

October 2019

Eye Center Resident Honored for Research on Telemedicine and Diabetic Eye Disease 
UC Davis Health
Michael P. Ellis, a UC Davis Eye Center resident, was awarded for his study on the cost effectiveness of telemedicine to screen for diabetic eye disease. His study reviewed the costs and revenues of telemedicine, and approach that holds great potential for increasing efficiency and access to care.

Bipartisan Bill to Improve Telehealth Access for Central Valley
The Ritz-Herald
A new bipartisan bill called the Specialty Treatment Access and Referrals (STAR) Act aims to provide support for the creation of new telehealth infrastructure. The bill will allow patients and doctors in the Central Valley to electronically connect with doctors in other areas of the state through eConsults and other telehealth services. Jana Katz-Bell, assistant dean of interprofessional programs at UC Davis Health, is quoted in the article.

Colleagues From Across UC System Converge at UC Davis Health for Telehealth Summit
UC Davis Health
Nearly 200 representatives from five UC Health campuses attended the UC Telehealth Summit held Friday, Oct. 4 at UC Davis Health. Attendees shared practice, research and education priorities, as well as high-level architectural strategy with the goal of fostering collaborative approaches to improving telehealth and connected health services.

International Team of Researchers Explore Future Health Technology
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health and Aalborg University in Denmark have partnered for the past three summers to offer the Transatlantic Telehealth Research Network (TTRN) Graduate Fellowship and International Exchange Program, where faculty and students from both universities spend a week immersed in digital health technologies research and development.

September 2019

UC Davis Health wins Best Poster Abstract at 2019 national telehealth symposium
UC Davis Health
UC Davis Health continued its legacy as a leader in telehealth with a strong showing at the 1029 National Telehealth Research symposium, taking home the People's Choice Award for Best Poster Abstract presentation.

UC Davis Health again named "Most Wired" health care organization
UC Davis Health
Once again, UC Davis Health has earned "Most Wired" status by the College of Healthcare Information Management Executives (CHIME) for the eighth time. The designation includes a performance excellence award and classifies UC Davis Health as a leader in the health care information technology industry.

August 2019

Oncology Nurses Help Bring Telemedicine to Rural Communities
Oncology Nursing News
A recent study at UC Davis Health examined how telehealth can be used for rural patients undergoing chemotherapy by monitoring symptoms and offering ongoing conversation and support throughout treatment. 

UC Davis PRIME Programs Help Underserved Communities (Video)
UC Davis Health
The UC Davis School of Medicine provides opportunities for students to join four PRIME programs. These programs train medical student leaders to identify, understand, and serve the unique health needs of California's rural, urban, and valley populations. Each program features a telehealth component as the goal of the programs is to address the lack of access to care in underserved communities.

July 2019

Health Insurance Linked to Hospitals' Decision to Transfer or Admit Children with Mental Health Emergencies
UC Davis Health
A national study finds children without insurance who seek treatment for a mental health disorder in the emergency department are more likely than those with private insurance to be transferred to another hospital. Dr. James Marcin is examining how telehealth can be a solution to the tendency to transfer patients.

UC Davis Physician Named Women's Health Research Scholar, Awarded Funds for Telehealth Lactation Support Clinical Trial
UC Davis Health
Laura Kair, a UC Davis Children's Hospital pediatrician and clinical researcher, has been selected as an Interdisciplinary Women’s Health Research (IWHR) scholar in the Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) K12 program. This program provides Kair with training and mentoring, as well as funds for her telehealth-based clinical trial. The trial is focused on the effect of home-based telehealth lactation support visits for breastfeeding women who deliver their babies four to six weeks early.

UC Davis Telehealth Physician Featured on NPR
National Public Radio (NPR)
UC Davis Health critical care pediatrician James Marcin, M.D., spoke with NPR's Weekend Edition about the value of telehealth for both primary care doctors in remote hospitals and rural patients. He said telehealth allows patients to receive care in their own communities, without making costly and time-consuming trips to see a specialist.  

June 2019

2019 National Telehealth Research Symposium Slated for September
National Consortium of Telehealth Resource Centers
The 2019 National Telehealth Research Symposium will take place September 11-13, 2019 in Chicago. The three-day meeting will bring together connected health researchers, academicians, and telehealth visionaries to share findings and foster research partnerships. The symposium is supported by the Society for Education and the Advancement of Research in Connected Health (SEARCH), the Supporting Pediatric Research on the Outcomes and Utilization of Telehealth (SPROUT) collaborative, and the National Consortium of Telehealth Resource Centers. UC Davis Health is a member of the National Consortium of Telehealth Resource Centers.

New AMA Policy Supports Project ECHO, CPAP Telemedicine Programs
mHealth Intelligence
At its annual meeting, the American Medical Association adopted a new policy calling for increased implementation of telemedicine programs like Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) and CPAP (Child Psychiatry Access Project) to boost access to resources for rural and remote care providers.

Telemedicine Web Platform Developed for UC Davis Ready for Patient Testing
Telecom Reseller
Appstem, a San Francisco-based product design and digital agency, has announced that the telemedicine web platform it developed for UC Davis has been approved for testing in patients. The project tests the efficacy of using machine translation to enable English-speaking doctors to more precisely understand and diagnose the mental health of non-English speaking patients.

May 2019

Telemedicine Brings Care Closer to Pediatric Patients in Rural Communities 
UC Davis Health
To get specialized care for their children, many families are turning to innovations like telehealth — remote consultation through video or audio — which allows them to stay in their communities.

April 2019

Dr. Peter Yellowlees Inducted as a Fellow of the ATA
American Telemedicine Association
Peter Yellowlees, M.D., psychiatrist and UC Davis Health chief wellness officer, has been inducted as a fellow of the American Telemedicine Association. This honor recognizes significant achievements telemedicine, service to the general telemedicine community and service to the association.

March 2019

Telemedicine: The Changing Face of Health Care
The Record
Through the School-Based Tele-Physiatry Assistance for Rehabilitative and Therapeutic Services (STARS) program, UC Davis Health physicians help children in Stockton, Calif. gain access to physiatry services.

UC Davis Launches Pediatric Tele-Physiatry Program 
UC Davis Health
A new program funded by a $2 million, five-year grant allows children with physical disabilities to connect to UC Davis Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation physicians via telehealth. The School-Based Tele-Physiatry Assistance for Rehabilitative and Therapeutic Services (STARS) program helps children in rural, underserved communities.

Good Day Sacramento Features Dr. Hoffman's NICU Webcam Program
CBS Local
UC Davis neonatologist Dr. Kristin Hoffman has received a national award for her development of a webcam program in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), which enables parents to see their infants remotely when they are unable to be in the NICU. Her work was featured on a segment with Good Day Sacramento.

February 2019

UC Davis MIND Institute Launches Infant TeleHelp Study
UC Davis MIND Institute
The UC Davis MIND Institute is conducting a study to understand how to help families who are concerned about their infants' development. The study is for babies ages 5 to 12 months old. No in-person visits are required as all visits will be conducted using telehealth technology.

Ph.D Students: Apply for Digital Health International Summer Fellowship
Transatlantic Telehealth Research Network at CITRIS
The Transatlantic Telehealth Research Network at CITRIS is hosting its third annual international program in Odense, Denmark from Aug. 12-16, 2019. Ph.D students are encouraged to apply for the fellowship, which gives a comprehensive introduction to research methods used in the different phases of the innovation process for digital health technologies such as telehealth, home monitoring, video consultation and more.

January 2019

UC Davis Doctor Wins 2019 Children's Miracle Network Achievement Award 
UC Davis Health
UC Davis neonatologist Dr. Kristin Hoffman has received a national award for her development of a webcam program in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), which enables parents to see their infants remotely when they are unable to be in the NICU.

Using Telementoring to Help Eradicate Hepatitis C
UC Davis Health
Through a telementoring program called ECHO-plus, liver disease specialists are training primary care providers in rural and suburban Northern California to treat hepatitis C patients using the latest treatments.

December 2018

Health Industry Adapts to the Rise of Telemedicine 
Sacramento Business Journal
Jana Katz-Bell, Assistant Dean for Interprofessional Programs at the UC Davis School of Medicine and Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, talks about the evolution of telehealth in the Sacramento region.

The Doctor is (Logged) In
Comstock's
James Marcin, M.D., talks about how the rise of telehealth targets rural patients and preventative medicine. Instead of being reactive, he says the goal is to be proactive in treating patients and preventing hospitalization.  

Retail Outlets Using Telehealth Pose Significant Privacy and Policy Concerns for Health Care
UC Davis Health
As retail outlets continue to expand their health care services and begin to utilize telehealth, researchers at the UC Davis School of Medicine and Harvard Medical School have some concerns about policy and privacy.

November 2018

UC Davis MIND Institute Launches Autism Tele-ECHO Program 
UC Davis Health
The UC Davis MIND Institute is launching a telehealth education program in 2019 aimed at helping community hospital clinicians care for children with autism.

October 2018

UC Davis Health Physician Wins Telehealth Research Award  
UC Davis Health
Stephanie Crossen, M.D., won an award for the best abstract at the Society for Education and Advancement of Research In Connected Health (SEARCH) telehealth research symposium in San Diego. 

Telehealth Just as Effective as In-Person Care for Treating Psoriasis
Clinical Innovation + Technology
Telehealth care models are just as effective as in-person visits with physicians when treating patients with psoriasis, according to a study published in JAMA. Study researchers include physicians with UC Davis Health.

September 2018

Tele-Ophthalmology Launched at UC Davis Midtown Clinic 
UC Davis Newsroom
A new tele-ophthalmology program in Sacramento aims to improve early screening for diabetic retinopathy to prevent vision loss.

UC Davis Telehealth Director Accepted into Leadership Program
California Health Care Foundation
Center for Health and Technology Director James Marcin, M.D., is one of 32 clinical leaders who have been accepted into the California Health Care Foundation's two-year Health Care Leadership Program.

UC Davis Awarded Tele-AIMI Behavioral Health Grant
UC Davis Newsroom 
Our telehealth team has been awarded a three-year grant for a research study that will evaluate the impact of adult and pediatric tele-behavioral health consultations on patient-centered outcomes.

Getting Great Care Via Video 
U.S. News & World Report
The UC Davis Cancer Care Network allows UC Davis cancer experts to hold videoconferences with oncologists, pathologists, surgeons and other cancer experts in rural hospitals so they can review patient cases and alert patients of clinical trials.

Trends and Innovations in Health Benefits and Care 
Sacramento Business Journal
Jana Katz-Bell, Assistant Dean for Interprofessional Programs at the UC Davis School of Medicine and Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing, talks about telehealth during a panel event.

Silicon Valley Telehealth Conference Explores "What Would Amazon Do?" Amid the New Wave of Telehealth Revenue Models
Markets Insider
Peter Yellowlees, UC Davis Professor of Psychiatry, discusses the expanding telehealth marketplace.

Treating Depression Through Telehealth
Chicago Health
Peter Yellowlees, UC Davis Professor of Psychiatry, discusses using telehealth to treat behavioral health issues.

August 2018

Lodi Hospital Teams Up With UC Davis for Telehealth Education
Lodi News-Sentinel
UC Davis Health offers mock drills so Lodi Adventist Health can better prepare its clinicians to administer emergency care to pediatric and neonatal patients.

July 2018

Panel: Telemedicine's Role in Combating the Opioid Epidemic
Markets Insider
Peter Yellowlees, UC Davis Professor of Psychiatry, discusses how telehealth can play a role in curbing the opioid epidemic.

June 2018

Virtual House Calls Offered Widely in Sacramento
Sacramento Bee
UC Davis Health offers telehealth and virtual visits so patients can have increased access to convenient care.

May 2018

Telehealth a Tool for Avoiding Clinician Burnout
mHealth Intelligence
Peter Yellowlees, UC Davis Professor of Psychiatry, talks about how it can be less stressful for a physician to see a patient online than in person.

March 2018

Northern Valley Indian Health Partners With UC Davis Telemedicine
Chico News and Review
UC Davis provides telehealth specialty services to Northern Valley Indian Health in Chico, Calif.

Telehealth Gives Rural Residents Access to Specialist Care
mHealth Intelligence
Cites a study by UC Davis Health that showed significant cost-savings associated with telehealth.

Congress Turns to Telemedicine to Take On Substance Abuse Epidemic
mHealth Intelligence
Peter Yellowlees, UC Davis Professor of Psychiatry, discusses the challenges of treating addicts through telehealth.

January 2018

Orchard Hospital and UC Davis Partner to Offer Pediatric Telemedicine
Gridley Herald
Pediatric telehealth services through UC Davis Health are now offered at Orchard Hospital in Gridley.

Telemedicine: The New House Call
KVIE Studio Sacramento
UC Davis Health doctors Thomas Nesbitt and Heather Young discuss the use of telehealth technology in health care. Link includes a video of the discussion.

Tech Transforming Health and Medicine
PLOS Blogs
James Michiel, UC Davis Mobile Health Lead, talks about the rise of consumer-facing health and fitness technology.