key: cord-0920382-5vs04mea authors: Laird-Gion, Jessica; Kelley-Hedgepeth, Alyson; Lee Lewis, Dara title: Virtual patient workshops: A tool for education, community, and empowerment in patients with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome date: 2022-03-08 journal: Heart Rhythm O2 DOI: 10.1016/j.hroo.2022.02.015 sha: 8187e16a88fefd47cf9230e97f1f6b1b1b59b01b doc_id: 920382 cord_uid: 5vs04mea nan compression garments; (3)"Exercise," which covered the research behind exercise and how to create and maintain an exercise routine to improve symptoms; and (4) "Living with POTS," which covered common comorbidities, accommodations in school and work, and how to talk about illness with friends and family. The workshop was well received by participants. When surveyed, all participants responded that they would recommend the workshop to a friend with POTS ( Figure 1 ). Patients reported that they received a more thorough understanding of their illness, learned about clear action items that can be incorporated in their daily life to improve symptoms, felt empowered to make changes, and formed a community with other POTS patients with whom they could share struggles, tips, and successes. The provider responses were also overwhelmingly positive; they felt that smallgroup sessions were an effective and efficient way to educate patients about POTS. Providers also commented that they learned strategies from the participants that informed future patient care. Limitations included the small sample size, the homogeneity of the groups (composed primarily of young white females), and difficulty quantifying the subjective measurement of the impact of the intervention on health outcomes. Empowerment-based group education invites social interaction, peer support, and modeling, and has been shown to improve outcomes in chronic health conditions including diabetes. 4, 5 Extending this concept to the virtual platform allows greater accessibility to those with health conditions such as POTS that can be unpredictably disabling. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the virtual platform offered a welcoming, safe space to gather with peers and providers. The virtual workshop can be used on a small scale within practices to provide additional support to patients and/or on a larger scale through online support groups to distribute helpful information to the POTS community. It is a costeffective and efficient way for providers to educate and empower patients, while encouraging patients to learn from and support one another. Funding Sources: This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. Disclosures: The authors have no conflicts to disclose. Authorship: All authors attest they meet the current ICMJE criteria for authorship. Patient Consent: Patients provided consent to participate in the workshop and complete surveys electronically via REDCap at the start of the study. Ethics Statement: This was a noninterventional study with minimal risks. It was reviewed by the Harvard Medical School institutional review board (IRB) and determined to meet the criteria for IRB exemption per the regulations found at 45 CFR 46.104(d) (1) (2) . All aspects of this study were conducted in compliance with Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) regulations and the HIPAA Omnibus Rule of 2013. -A 4-part virtual educational workshop, held by Zoom, was offered to patients with postural tachycardia syndrome in a Boston cardiology practice. -The workshop was well received by patients, who felt supported and empowered by the facilitators (MDs and medical student) and participating peers. -The workshop was well received by the physician facilitators, who felt it was an efficient and effective method of educating and supporting this often highneed population. Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome: JACC focus seminar The international POTS registry: evaluating the efficacy of an exercise training intervention in a community setting Quality of life in patients with postural tachycardia syndrome Assessment of group versus individual diabetes education: a randomized study Group education strategies for diabetes selfmanagement