A Report on Patient Experience of Care
Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network: A Report on Patient Experience of Care
In this retrospective study, researchers found that cancer patients who use telemedicine report better experiences than cancer patients treated in person. Researchers evaluated patients with solid tumors or hematologic malignancies who were treated at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa. Patient experience of care with telemedicine visits did not change over time, suggesting that implementing telemedicine was effective.
Telehealth Perceptions Vary Among Black Veterans with Chronic Pain
mHealth Intelligence: Telehealth Perceptions Vary Among Black Veterans with Chronic Pain
Researchers from the Regenstrief Institute and the US Department of Veterans Affairs described telehealth perceptions among Black Veterans with chronic pain, which included both positive and negative experiences and views. Through qualitative interviews, researchers found that a few patients identified positive experiences with telehealth early in the pandemic. A major benefit associated with telehealth was the convenience of access it provided, as patients described their willingness to accept telehealth in return for lack of exposure to COVID-19.
Exploring Fraud, Waste, and Abuse Within Telehealth
Healthcare Fraud Prevention Partnership: Exploring Fraud, Waste, and Abuse Within Telehealth
The Healthcare Fraud Prevention Partnership (HFPP) released a white paper providing background on the use of telehealth services prior to and during the COVID-19 PHE. The purpose of the paper was to identify fraud schemes that take advantage of increased telehealth usage. The paper reviews current telehealth policies, summarizes the benefits and multi-level barriers in telehealth care delivery, describes vulnerabilities, and identifies and characterizes telehealth-related schemes. The paper also reviews methods to identify and mitigate fraud, waste, and abuse in telehealth using referrals and hotlines, data analytics, databases and electronic health records, health care provider and patient education, and cross-disciplinary collaboration and information sharing. It also identifies several systemic challenges in detecting fraud, waste, and abuse in telehealth, and provides recommendations to mitigate these vulnerabilities.
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Open in new tab Rates of Telemedicine Visits During COVID-19 Pandemic
AJMC: Rates of Telemedicine Visits During COVID-19 Pandemic
A new study published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research found that older Medicaid beneficiaries had significantly higher telemedicine use during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with younger beneficiaries. The purpose of the study was to examine changes in telemedicine and in-person health service use during the COVID-19 pandemic across age groups for Medicaid beneficiaries in the state of Louisiana. Prior to the pandemic, telemedicine services accounted for less than one percent of total office visit claim volume across the age groups studied. Older Medicaid beneficiaries had higher rates of telemedicine claim volume during the COVID-19 pandemic compared with younger beneficiaries, highlighting a link between telemedicine services and access to care for this population.
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Telemedicine Adoption in an NCI-Designated Cancer Center During the COVID-19 Pandemic – A Report on Patient Experience of Care
Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (JNCCN): Telemedicine Adoption in an NCI-Designated Cancer Center During the COVID-19 Pandemic – A Report on Patient Experience of Care
Researchers from the Moffitt Cancer Center conducted a study to assess patient experiences with telemedicine visits after the initial pandemic period, finding patients rank telemedicine superior for access to care and provider engagement compared to in-person visits. The long-term study on patient experience analyzed survey responses from 39,268 patients across more than 50,000 visits. Telemedicine experiences were compared to in-person visits during and after the height of the pandemic, beginning in April 2020 through June 2021. When it came to access to care, 62.5 percent of in-person visits were rated as highly satisfying, versus 75.8 percent for telemedicine. The corresponding rates were 84.2 percent in-person and 90.7 percent via telemedicine for high satisfaction with the response and amount of concern demonstrated by their care provider.
Telehealth Experiences and Preferences Among Californians with Low Incomes
California Health Care Foundation: Telehealth Experiences and Preferences Among Californians with Low Incomes
The California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) engaged NORC at the University of Chicago to recruit and interview Californians with low incomes who reflect the diversity of the state. Although interviewees report different levels of comfort, satisfaction, and future interest in telehealth, many commonalities in experiences and future preferences for telehealth emerged from this research:
- Telehealth increases access to health care for many Californians with low incomes;
- Telehealth helps patients build stronger relationships with their providers;
- Telehealth visits with language-concordant providers are more effective;
- Californians with low incomes want telehealth to play an integral role in their future care; and
- Patients want to choose or be involved in decisions about the modality of their visits.
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Expanding Audiology Services Through Telehealth Enabled Partnerships
The Hearing Journal: Expanding Audiology Services Through Telehealth Enabled Partnerships
Hearing loss is a widespread health condition affecting millions of people worldwide. Unfortunately, there is a severe shortage of formally trained hearing professionals to identify and treat the increasing needs. Audiology services can be extended by actively partnering with a number of other allied health care professionals. Teleaudiology options can enable audiology practices to support allied health professions remotely with limited human resource requirements. COVID-19-accelerated teleaudiology options for remote self-testing can, for example, link to an audiologist asynchronously or even synchronously.
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Mental Health-Related Telemedicine Interventions for Pregnant Women and New Mothers
BMC Psychiatry: Mental Health-Related Telemedicine Interventions for Pregnant Women and New Mothers
A study published in BMC Psychiatry indicated that telehealth interventions evaluated in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) can help treat common maternal mental health challenges. Researchers conducted a systematic literature review that focused on a primary and secondary objective: the first is whether telehealth can lessen mental health issues in pregnant and postpartum women, and the latter is to gain further insight into the impact of different strategies and data surrounding their frequency. About 62 percent of these articles reported improvements in mental health outcomes of participants receiving telehealth-based interventions compared to the control group. Specifically, cognitive behavioral therapy aided depression and stress, and peer support helped treat postnatal depression and anxiety. The articles also show that preventive strategies were generally effective.
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Updated National Survey Trends in Telehealth Utilization and Modality
Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE): Updated National Survey Trends in Telehealth Utilization and Modality
This report updates prior findings on national trends of telehealth use through an analysis using the Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey data from April 2021 through August 2022. Compared to earlier periods in the pandemic, telehealth utilization was lower during the study period (April 14, 2021 through August 8, 2022), but continued to remain above pre-pandemic levels. The highest rates of telehealth visits were among those covered by Medicaid (28.3 percent) and Medicare (26.8 percent), individuals who are Black (26.1 percent), and those earning less than $25,000 (26.4 percent). The report also emphasized the importance of audio-only telehealth for addressing disparities in populations and across insurance types.
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The Use of Telemedicine in Medical Education and Patient Care
Cureus: The Use of Telemedicine in Medical Education and Patient Care
The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated and expanded the adoption of telemedicine globally. This allowed telemedicine to engage medical students in patient care and ensured continuity of care for vulnerable patients. This article reviews the major facilitators and barriers any medical and educational institution must address when using telemedicine, and explores future promises telemedicine has for medical education.
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