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Telemedicine, Not The Panacea We Thought It Would Be. A Tale Of Caution, Ahmed Elkhapery, Syed Faiz Abbas, Basil George Verghese

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

In the last few decades, the growing use of telemedicine has allowed access to healthcare at reduced costs and increased monitoring of chronic conditions, especially in underserved and rural areas. It is a tool of great value in low-income countries where there is a paucity of specialists. In the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, telemedicine was used to screen patients with COVID-19 like symptoms and send them to test sites directly. This helped minimize unnecessary healthcare staff and patient exposure to the infection and helped decompress ERs. Due to a lack of testing resources, many mildly symptomatic patients were presumed …

A Pilot Study Of Knee And Hip Osteoarthritis Patient Experience With Telemedicine During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Rondy M. Lazaro, Kyle J. Smith, Mohammad H. Bawany, Nathan Barford, Jennifer H. Paul

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

Objective: The purpose of this pilot study is to examine patients' experience and satisfaction using telemedicine for knee and hip osteoarthritis care during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Adult patients seen via telemedicine for knee and/or hip osteoarthritis pain completed surveys through the REDCap online platform or pen/paper evaluating their experiences and satisfaction with telemedicine, assessed using yes/no and Likert scale questions. Demographic information was collected from the electronic medical record (EMR).

Results: 32 subjects (9 males, 23 females, mean age 63.2 years [SD = 12.2 years]) completed surveys. 90.6% of subjects stated that they were satisfied with the audio/video quality …

Trial By Fire: Impact Of Rapid Expansion Of Telemedicine In A Large Community Health System, Scott Stratton-Smith, Cole Nardi, Benjamin Snyder

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

Background: Our community-based health system transitioned to a largely telehealth-based approach under the pressure of the COVID-19 pandemic. Limited implementation of telehealth had begun in 2018, but provider and patient reluctance and inadequate reimbursement prevented widespread adoption at the time. The pandemic accelerated our system’s telehealth efforts.

Results: In February 2020, video technology was rarely utilized, with the organization averaging fewer than 10 video visits per month. In April 2020, our providers used it for over 30% of all visits in our system, accounting for over 30,000 visits. Before COVID-19, fewer than 20 of our providers had performed a direct-to-patient …