Sandhu Kuldip S, Singh Akashdeep, Singh Akashdeep, Singh Daljinder, Sandhu Annie
Orthopedics, Government Medical College, Patiala, IND.
Emergency Department, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Rishikesh, IND.
Cureus. 2021 Sep 30;13(9):e18399. doi: 10.7759/cureus.18399. eCollection 2021 Sep.
Telemedicine is improving healthcare delivery in orthopedic patients but the data regarding this are scarce from India, especially North India.
During this one-year prospective observational study, all patients with fractures of the upper end of tibia requiring surgical intervention and who consented to avail teleconsultation services were included. All these patients were assessed by patient satisfaction score pre-operatively. Patients were randomly assigned for post-operative care schedules of 5 and 14 days in telemedicine and inpatient visits during their follow-up period.
A total of 50 patients were included and the satisfaction rating among the two groups was identical. The average patient satisfaction score (on a 10-point scale) was found to be 9.77 in the inpatient visits based on the one-on-one follow-up group and 9.79 in the telemedicine consultation group.
In orthopedics, the implementation of telemedicine can minimize the need for the patient to physically visit the outpatient department. The rates of response and overall patient satisfaction were high in the telemedicine group. However, more efforts should be made to address the limitations and problems of using telemedicine.
远程医疗正在改善骨科患者的医疗服务，但来自印度的数据，尤其是印度北部的数据却很稀少。
在这项为期一年的前瞻性观察研究中，纳入了所有需要手术干预且同意使用远程会诊服务的胫骨上端骨折患者。所有这些患者在术前通过患者满意度评分进行评估。在随访期间，患者被随机分配接受5天和14天的远程医疗术后护理计划以及住院就诊。
共纳入50例患者，两组的满意度评分相同。基于一对一随访组的住院就诊患者平均满意度评分（满分10分）为9.77，远程医疗会诊组为9.79。
在骨科领域，远程医疗的实施可以减少患者到门诊部就诊的需求。远程医疗组的响应率和患者总体满意度较高。然而，应做出更多努力来解决使用远程医疗的局限性和问题。
