Our Experts

ChristianaCare’s Center for Virtual Health
BY SARAH SCHENCK, M.D., FACP
CHRISTIANACARE IS COMMITTED to serving our community, and that includes finding ways to remove the barriers that keep people from taking an active role in their own health.

Through our Center for Virtual Health, we are making it possible for our neighbors to get their medical care when and where it is most convenient for them—whether at home using a computer or mobile device, in a Community Access Point such as a local library, or even in their neighborhood, like the Kingswood Community Center in Wilmington.

THE POWER OF A TEAM

Dr. Sarah Schenck, Internist and Clinical Director of Practice Transformation for Primary Care and Community Medicine at ChristianaCare, spoke on the future of telehealth for primary care, jumpstarted by COVID 19 restrictions. She discussed the system’s gradual adoption of telehealth prior to the pandemic, today all primary care providers have been trained to provide services for patient needs from general health care, medication renewals, mental health, and urgent care conditions, such as sinusitis, back pain, urinary tract infections and common rashes. She discussed the advantages of telehealth for treating chronic health conditions, and disease prevention. As an alternative to emergency room visits for non-emergency care, telehealth delivers considerable cost savings while removing barriers to care for low income patients. She also discussed the security and privacy built into the service. As Director of Community Medicine she described their efforts to reach underserved neighborhood, through outreach in community centers.

"Since the pandemic, the COVID-19 Virtual Practice and the CareVio team have provided invaluable support to patients, especially those who may not need hospitalization, but need monitoring at home to ensure they are managing their symptoms appropriately," said Sarah Schenck, M.D.