Epilepsy Center Frankfurt Rhine-Main and Department of Neurology, University Hospital and Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany; LOEWE Center for Personalized Translational Epilepsy Research (CePTER), Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Epilepsy Center Frankfurt Rhine-Main and Department of Neurology, University Hospital and Goethe University Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Epilepsy Behav. 2020 Nov;112:107483. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2020.107483. Epub 2020 Oct 6.
When the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic reached Europe in 2020, a German governmental order forced clinics to immediately suspend elective care, causing a problem for patients with chronic illnesses such as epilepsy. Here, we report the experience of one clinic that converted its outpatient care from personal appointments to telemedicine services.
Documentations of telephone contacts and telemedicine consultations at the Epilepsy Center Frankfurt Rhine-Main were recorded in detail between March and May 2020 and analyzed for acceptance, feasibility, and satisfaction of the conversion from personal to telemedicine appointments from both patients' and medical professionals' perspectives.
Telephone contacts for 272 patients (mean age: 38.7 years, range: 17-79 years, 55.5% female) were analyzed. Patient-rated medical needs were either very urgent (6.6%, n = 18), urgent (23.5%, n = 64), less urgent (29.8%, n = 81), or nonurgent (39.3%, n = 107). Outpatient service cancelations resulted in a lack of understanding (9.6%, n = 26) or anger and aggression (2.9%, n = 8) in a minority of patients, while 88.6% (n = 241) reacted with understanding, or relief (3.3%, n = 9). Telemedicine consultations rather than a postponed face-to-face visit were requested by 109 patients (40.1%), and these requests were significantly associated with subjective threat by SARS-CoV-2 (p = 0.004), urgent or very urgent medical needs (p = 0.004), and female gender (p = 0.024). Telemedicine satisfaction by patients and physicians was high. Overall, 9.2% (n = 10) of patients reported general supply problems due to SARS-CoV-2, and 28.4% (n = 31) reported epilepsy-specific problems, most frequently related to prescriptions, or supply problems for antiseizure drugs (ASDs; 22.9%, n = 25).
Understanding and acceptance of elective ambulatory visit cancelations and the conversion to telemedicine consultations was high during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown. Patients who engaged in telemedicine consultations were highly satisfied, supporting the feasibility and potential of telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
2020 年，SARS-CoV-2 大流行到达欧洲时，德国政府命令诊所立即暂停择期治疗，这给癫痫等慢性病患者带来了问题。在这里，我们报告了一家诊所的经验，该诊所将其门诊护理从预约改为远程医疗服务。
2020 年 3 月至 5 月期间，详细记录了法兰克福莱茵美因癫痫中心的电话联系和远程医疗咨询记录，并从患者和医疗专业人员的角度分析了从个人预约转为远程医疗预约的接受程度、可行性和满意度。
分析了 272 名患者（平均年龄：38.7 岁，范围：17-79 岁，55.5%为女性）的电话联系情况。患者评定的医疗需求要么非常紧急（6.6%，n=18），紧急（23.5%，n=64），不太紧急（29.8%，n=81），或不紧急（39.3%，n=107）。门诊服务取消导致少数患者感到不理解（9.6%，n=26）或愤怒和攻击（2.9%，n=8），而 88.6%（n=241）则表示理解或宽慰（3.3%，n=9）。109 名患者（40.1%）要求进行远程医疗咨询，而不是推迟面对面就诊，这些请求与 SARS-CoV-2 的主观威胁（p=0.004）、紧急或非常紧急的医疗需求（p=0.004）和女性性别（p=0.024）显著相关。患者和医生对远程医疗的满意度都很高。总的来说，由于 SARS-CoV-2，10%（n=10）的患者报告了一般供应问题，28.4%（n=31）报告了癫痫特有的问题，最常见的是与处方或抗癫痫药物（ASD）供应有关的问题（22.9%，n=25）。
在冠状病毒病 2019（COVID-19）封锁期间，对选择性门诊就诊取消和转为远程医疗咨询的理解和接受程度很高。参与远程医疗咨询的患者非常满意，这支持了 COVID-19 大流行期间及以后远程医疗的可行性和潜力。
