WyTN June Newsletter

The Wyoming Telehealth Network newsletter is your source for information, resources and best practices in telehealth. We support healthcare entities, providers, and specialists through professional development, collaboration, and leveraging of telecommunications technology.

Wyoming Telehealth Network Webinar

Join us for our next Webinar:

Telecourt During COVID-19 and Beyond:

Innovating for Behavioral Health

Presenter:

David Martorano, MD

Assistant Medical Director, Director of Adult Psychiatric Services,

Wyoming Behavioral Institute

Not everything that came out of the pandemic was bad. Improved technology has facilitated everything from the delivery of care from remote locations to patient interaction with the legal system through the use of telecourt. Join us to learn more about what being locked down during COVID-19 pandemic containment effort taught us about patient care.

Wednesday, June 30, 2021

12:00pm - 1:00pm (MT)

Click Here to Register for Session

WyTN Zoom License Re-Enrollment

If you were enrolled to receive a no-cost, HIPAA-secure Zoom license for providing telehealth from the Wyoming Telehealth Network (WyTN), you must re-enroll in the program. The reason for re-enrollment is to decrease the amount of providers, facilities and students who, for whatever reason, no longer need access to their license for providing telehealth. The re-enrollment provides the WyTN with a due diligence process and ensures proper usage of the Zoom® licenses for quality assurance purposes.

Re-Enrollment Deadline: September 1, 2021

Anyone who does not re-enroll will be unlinked from the WyTN's Zoom account

Please note that we will be sending out multiple reminders to re-enroll, so if you have already re-enrolled since June 7, 2021, and have received a confirmation email, please disregard additional reminders. If you have any questions, please email wy-telehealth@uwyo.edu.

For more information, please visit our website:

http://wyomingtelehealth.org/enrollment/

Click Here to Re-Enroll Now

June Telehealth Spotlight

Kayleigh Schermerhorn, pictured above, with Verizon Wireless staff and the tablets that will provide support to Wyoming families for telehealth access.

Did you know mini-grants are now available to help Wyoming families offset the costs of technology for their children's telehealth medical appointments? Overcoming obstacles to telehealth can be challenging, but Wendy Warren, Program Manager at the Wyoming Institute for Disabilities (WIND), found a way to help. By applying for a grant to Family Voices, she was able to secure funding to provide devices to families who need them to access telehealth. But after working with families who needed access, it seemed that there was one more barrier to surmount—internet access. The team at WIND, including Kayleigh Schermerhorn (pictured here with helpful Verizon® Wireless staff) went to work to find an innovative solution to address this need with the funds available. The result? WIND now has nineteen Verizon® tablets with pre-paid cellular data service to provide direct support to Wyoming families in need of telehealth access. Read more here about how to access these devices.

Click Here to Read Full Article

What inspired you to apply for a grant for this program?

Wendy Warren: Many families in Wyoming are not familiar with video conferencing platforms that are typically utilized for telehealth visits with health care providers, educators, and other service providers. Additionally, the rural and frontier nature of Wyoming severely limits access to specialty care, making telehealth critical for access to services. We wanted to provide additional resources about the effectiveness of telehealth services to help families understand the safety and positive outcomes and devices and data to support telehealth appointments.

What is the criteria for Wyoming families to participate?

Wendy: Criteria for Wyoming families to participate:

Participate in 2 online training sessions
Demonstrated need (child w/ special health care needs, upcoming therapy sessions and/or medical appointments that could be completed via Telehealth

WyTN Zoom Licenses - Meeting Purpose Additions

There are now two additional options to choose from when entering the "Primary Purpose of Meeting" when scheduling in your Zoom account through the WyTN. The two new options to choose from are "Case Management" and "Consultation". By gathering data on how our users are using their Zoom licenses and what kind of meetings they are having, the WyTN can learn how to better serve and connect with providers and patients across the state.

Telehealth's Popularity Drives Bipartisan Push to Keep Virtual Health Care

Telehealth encounters boomed during the COVID-19 pandemic after lawmakers temporarily removed regulations on patients seeing their doctors via computer or phone. Now, federal lawmakers want to keep it that way. This article written by Madelyn Beck from Boise State Public Radio News on Wyoming Public Media's website is a snapshot of how multiple bipartisan bills in Congress are aimed at helping Americans maintain access to telehealth.

Click Here to Read Full Article

Emergency Broadband Benefit

The Federal Communications Commission has launched a temporary program to help families and households struggling to afford Internet service during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Emergency Broadband Benefit provides a discount of up to $50 per month toward broadband service for eligible households and up to $75 per month for households on qualifying Tribal lands.

Eligible households can also receive a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase a laptop, desktop computer, or tablet from participating providers.

Eligible households can enroll through a participating broadband provider or directly with the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) using an online or mail in application.

You can learn more about the benefit, including eligibility and enrollment information, by visiting www.fcc.gov/broadbandbenefit, or by calling 833-511-0311.

Wyoming Telehealth Consortium

The Wyoming Telehealth Consortium is the central meeting space to discuss the programs, success/challenges, and discuss ideas on improving the use of telehealth in the state. The Consortium meets on the last Tuesday of every month, from 3:00 - 5:00 p.m. Anyone interested in building telehealth is encouraged to attend.

Tuesday, June 29

3:00pm - 5:00pm

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/371954998