106 Learning from the Long Term Experiences of Patients Recovering from COVID-19: Utilizing a Novel Approach to a Transition of Care Curriculum to Benefit Students and Patients

Lam, R.; Becerra, R.; Wigglesworth, K.; Buliga-Stoian, M.; McGing, M.; Davis, D.; Denzer, B. M.; Garimella, S.; Leary, J.

Study Objective: Medical students interviewed and longitudinally followed COVID-19 patients after discharge from hospitalization and ED settings. Utilizing telehealth, students participated in care, provided support and learned about the disease burden of COVID-19. Students improved care by providing feedback from themes identified from these interviews to improve the transition of care process with care teams. In March 2020 medical students were removed from their clinical experiences due to COVID-19. This disruption to the traditional method of medical education was an impetus to explore new creative approaches to clinical education Transitions of care are an important component of patient care and pose significant risks for complex patients. The use of telehealth grew exponentially during the pandemic and is an important skill set for future physicians. Telehealth allowed medical students to participate in care in meaningful and safe ways. Methods: Patients who either visited the ED or were hospitalized for a COVID-19 infection at two large hospitals from March-September 2020 were identified for inclusion in the study. Medical students contacted these patients over the telephone and administered a questionnaire. Students inquired about symptoms, impact on mental health, impact on financial stability and positive or negative experiences while in the hospital. Students followed up with patients who were still experiencing symptoms every 2 weeks or until symptoms were stable for 4 weeks. Students participated in a weekly meeting with care team leaders and provided feedback with themes related to the patient experience. Improvements to the transition of care and follow up with patients were made in real time based on this feedback. At the end of the project, a structured interview with medical students was collected about the impact of participation. Results: 112 patients were contacted for participation. Of those, 64 individuals consented and completed the interview. 14 patients were interviewed multiple times due to ongoing symptoms. Students noted multiple benefits across Kirkpatrick's Scale on the structured interview. Benefits included learning about a novel disease, collaborating with care teams and creating student led performance improvement projects. Qualitative themes of long COVID patients reflected emotional impact of recovery and resulted in interventions to improve mental health care for recovering patients. Conclusion: A wide variety of disease processes could be applied to transition of care curriculum to simultaneously provide another avenue of support for patients while exposing medical students to the vast complexity of disease burden. [Formula presented]