Caregiver and Clinician Experience With Virtual Services for Children and Youth With Complex Needs During COVID-19

Introduction: During the COVID-19 pandemic, support services for children and youth quickly shifted to virtual means. To continue delivering essential, trauma-informed, specialized services, the center transitioned to providing most services by phone/video conference. Method: A quality improvement project using survey methods was conducted to determine if virtual delivery was timely and satisfactory for inpatient and outpatient care. Results: Findings indicated services were timely. Caregivers appreciated the support, felt a personal connection with staff, and confirmed services met their goals and expectations. However, challenges faced by staff included engaging the child/youth by phone/video, loss of collaboration with colleagues, and concerns about fulfilling their role through virtual means. Discussion: Understanding stakeholder experiences illuminated the path of quality improvement during this major shift in service delivery. Benefits were shown for a blended model of in-person and virtual services on the basis of clinical judgment and the unique needs of clients and families in considering future service model options.