Telemedicine-Enabled ICU Recovery Clinics: Implementation Outcomes of the TelePORT Pilot Study

Monday, March 23, 2026

2:30 PM - 3:30 PM Central Time

Location: Connections Central - RST 11

Binnie You, PhD, MSN, RN

Vanderbilt University School of Nursing

Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.
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Shu Fen Siao, MSN, RN (she/her/hers)

Taiwan (Republic of China)

Disclosure(s): No relevant financial relationship(s) to disclose.
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Marianna LaNoue, PhD, MS

Principal Scientist
Evidentia Consulting, Nashville, TN (*Major portions of this work were completed when Dr. LaNoue was on the faculty at Vanderbilt University School of Nursing)

Disclosure information not submitted.
SP

Susan E. Piras, PhD, RN, CNE

Associate Professor
Whitson-Hester School of Nursing, Tennessee Tech University, Cookeville, TN, USA; Cookeville Regional Medical Center, Cookeville, TN, USA

Disclosure information not submitted.
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Amy Garrett, BSN, RN, CCRN

ICU Nurse Educator
Cookeville Regional Medical Center, Cookeville, TN, USA

Disclosure information not submitted.
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Carla M. Sevin, MD (she/her/hers)

Vanderbilt University Medical Center

Disclosure information not submitted.
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Leanne Boehm, PhD, RN, ACNS-BC (she/her/hers)

Vanderbilt University
Vanderbilt University, Tennessee

Disclosure information not submitted.

Introduction: Critical illness survivors often develop post-intensive care syndrome (PICS) that can limit their capacity to participate effectively in recovery care. Telemedicine-enabled ICU Recovery Clinics (ICU-RC) may improve accessibility, but their implementation has not been well studied. We evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, appropriateness, and fidelity of a telemedicine ICU-RC intervention.

Methods: We report results of a pilot feasibility randomized controlled trial of a telemedicine ICU-RC which included 91 patients with septic shock or acute respiratory distress syndrome randomly assigned 1:1 to intervention (N = 46 with scheduled multidisciplinary telemedicine ICU-RC visits at 3- and 12-weeks post-discharge) or control (N = 45 treatment-as usual). Within the intervention group, feasibility was assessed by validated measures (12-item, 5-point Likert scale [1 strongly disagree - 5 strongly agree]) and fidelity was assessed using real-time monitoring of visits. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics.

Results: Participants were middle-aged (median = 56), White (91%), and male (51%). In the telemedicine group, 23 (50%) attended at least one ICU-RC visit; with 60% and 49% at 3- and 12-weeks, respectively. Attrition reflects 5 withdrawals, 1 deceased, and 3 lost to follow up. Median visit durations were 52 minutes at 3-weeks and 34 minutes at 12-weeks. Participants rated telemedicine ICU-RC as feasible (median = 4.38), acceptable (median = 4.13), and appropriate (median = 4.13) for PICS care. We achieved high multidisciplinary fidelity at both 3- and 12-weeks, ranging 73-100% participation of pharmacist, physician, nurse practitioner, and psychologist. The most common visit activities were medication reconciliation (100%), review of immunization status (85%), evaluation of psychological needs (85%), debrief of ICU course and expected recovery (79%), and discussion of smoking (72%).

Conclusions: The telemedicine ICU-RC demonstrated strong implementation outcomes. Although patient ratings of feasibility, acceptability, and appropriateness were favorable, high attrition limits the generalizability of these patient-reported outcomes. These findings suggest telemedicine is a promising strategy to improve access to PICS care and warrant further study in larger, more diverse populations.