Department of Information Systems and Business Analytics, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, USA.
Department of Marketing and International Business, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, USA.
Telemed J E Health. 2021 Jul;27(7):714-723. doi: 10.1089/tmj.2020.0351. Epub 2020 Nov 13.
COVID-19 has resulted in a rapid and significant adoption of telemedicine for acute conditions. Understanding whether patient demand will last after the pandemic helps providers and payers make informed decisions about whether to continue adopting telemedicine. We examine user experience as well as process and patient outcomes of using telemedicine for acute conditions during COVID-19 and assess how patient outcomes are affected by waiting times and demographics. A survey was conducted via Amazon Mechanical Turk during June 17-29, 2020. Inclusion criteria were: (1) ≥18 years old, (2) residing in the United States, (3) used telemedicine for acute conditions after January, and 4) a human intelligence task approval rate of >95%. Process outcomes included patient waiting time with patient outcomes being satisfaction and future use intention. Bivariate analysis and regressions of the data were performed. On average, respondents reported appointment wait time of 2.76 days and virtual office wait time of 19.44 min. Overall, respondents reported moderate satisfaction (mean 5.08-5.35 of 7) and future use intention (mean 5.10-5.32 of 7). Over 72% of the respondents were satisfied and had future use intention. Females, heavier internet users, and those on the higher/lower ends of the education spectrum reported better patient outcomes. Patients "visiting" a doctor experiencing eye problems, vis-à-vis other ailments, reported lower satisfaction and intention. Waiting time negatively associates with satisfaction. Given the satisfactory outcomes, the high demand for telemedicine may continue after the COVID-19 pandemic. However, whether providers will continue to offer telemedicine visits may require more evidence.
COVID-19 导致了对急性病症远程医疗的快速和重大采用。了解大流行后患者的需求是否会持续，有助于提供者和支付者做出有关是否继续采用远程医疗的明智决策。我们研究了在 COVID-19 期间使用远程医疗治疗急性病症的用户体验以及流程和患者结果，并评估了患者结果如何受到等待时间和人口统计学特征的影响。2020 年 6 月 17 日至 29 日，通过 Amazon Mechanical Turk 进行了一项调查。纳入标准为：（1）≥18 岁，（2）居住在美国，（3）自 1 月以来使用过远程医疗治疗急性病症，以及（4）人类智能任务批准率>95％。流程结果包括患者的等待时间和患者的结果，即满意度和未来使用意向。对数据进行了单变量分析和回归分析。 平均而言，受访者报告的预约等待时间为 2.76 天，虚拟办公室等待时间为 19.44 分钟。总体而言，受访者报告的满意度适中（7 分制中的 5.08-5.35 分）和未来使用意向（7 分制中的 5.10-5.32 分）。超过 72％的受访者感到满意并有未来的使用意向。女性，更多使用互联网的人以及教育程度较高/较低的人报告的患者结果更好。与其他疾病相比，“看”眼科医生的患者报告的满意度和意向较低。等待时间与满意度呈负相关。鉴于令人满意的结果，远程医疗的高需求可能会在 COVID-19 大流行之后持续下去。但是，提供者是否会继续提供远程医疗服务可能需要更多证据。
