Eagle Launches New Pediatrics and Neonatology Telemedicine Programs

ATLANTA, Ga. (August 22, 2020) — Eagle Telemedicine is now offering pediatrics and neonatology telemedicine, including neonatal ICU (NICU)  ― the newest additions to its extensive list of multi-specialty solutions.

“These are critical telemedicine specialties we are excited to offer in our roster of services,” said Talbot “Mac” McCormick, MD, president and CEO of Eagle Telemedicine. “TelePediatrics and Tele-NICU are perfect complements to our Maternal-Fetal Telemedicine services, and they meet a real need in rural communities.”

“Given the nationwide shortage of pediatrics and neonatology specialists, we’ve seen an urgency for this type of specialty program in hospitals across the country,” Dr. McCormick explained.

“Hospitals have expressed a great need for these programs,” said Patrick Sherman, VP of Sales. “We’ve seen requests for TelePediatrics and Tele-NICU services in smaller community hospitals, to help stabilize these patients and provide guidance on next steps and treatment.”

The program comes at a time of intense interest across the country in the role of telehealth in helping patients, especially those in rural areas who struggle to find qualified pediatrics and neonatology specialists. (Neonatologists are Pediatric physicians with an additional two to three years of education and training in treatment of high-risk newborns.)

The need for pediatrics care has reached critical levels, with children’s hospitals across the country continuing to experience significant shortages in pediatric specialties, according to a 2017 survey from the Children’s Hospital Association.

“Facilities that offer labor and delivery services as well as high-acuity nurseries or NICUs, but have limited or no Neonatologists, can benefit substantially from this type of telemedicine program,” McCormick added.

When partnered with Eagle’s telemedicine for Maternal Fetal Medicine (Tele-MFM) service, hospitals can keep those high-risk deliveries and improve occupancy rates in their nurseries, with newborns receiving the highest standard of care — all close to home.

Similarly, when young children require hospitalization for sudden illness or injury, a Pediatrics specialist can be available to oversee hospital care during evenings and weekends — or cover for the local Pediatrician as necessary, said McCormick. “This may help to avoid transfers to hospitals far away, allowing the child and family to receive needed care in their own community.”