Can sotalol initiation for atrial fibrillation be performed safely outpatient, and if so, what would be a reasonable protocol for implementing this? 

In my opinion, sotalol (and Tikosyn) should never be initiated as an outpatient. We have all seen cases of torsades at some point in our careers related to sotalol initiation and QT prolongation, even when resuming a dose that was previously tolerated. There is a nice review article published in JAC...