The Doctor Will Zoom You Now: An Experiential Telemedicine Assessment for Pediatric Residents

There has been increased use of telemedicine in clinical practice, but telemedicine curricula are not standard in pediatric residency training. We developed a 2-case, Virtual Objective Structured Clinical Exam (VOSCE) for pediatric residents with telemedicine learning objectives. Resident competency was assessed using a behaviorally anchored checklist, and residents completed a pre/post self-assessment. Less than half of the residents met mastery for the following behaviors: confirmation of patient identifiers, optimization of technical aspects and partnering with the patient to perform a physical exam. Resident self-assessment improved after participating in the VOSCE but remained low in key domains such as virtual physical exam and mental health issue identification and guidance. Most pediatric residents have not mastered all the skills needed for a successful telemedicine encounter. Incorporating a curriculum focused on telemedicine best practices into residency training is highly merited.