Dodeja Anudeep K, Schreier Matthew, Granger Matthew, Mitchell Deborah, Chumita Rosemary, Sisk Tracey, Daniels Curt J, Rajpal Saurabh
Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Connecticut Children's, Hartford, Connecticut, USA.
Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, USA.
Telemed J E Health. 2023 Aug;29(8):1261-1265. doi: 10.1089/tmj.2022.0279. Epub 2023 Jan 18.
Introduction:The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in increased use of telemedicine. There are limited data on patient experience with telemedicine in adults with congenital heart disease (ACHD). We hypothesized that due to their complex medical history, ACHD would prefer in-person clinic visits over telemedicine.
Methods:We conducted a nurse-administered telephone survey based on Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality recommendations to assess patient experience after ACHD telemedicine visits in the early part of the pandemic from March 2020 to June 2020.
Results:Of 216 ACHD who had telemedicine visits, 136 (63%) agreed to participate in the survey. Mean age was 45 ± 18 years, majority (65%) being video encounters. Most (98%) patients expressed that the telemedicine visit was successful in addressing their health care needs. Only 21 (15%) patients reported technical issues. Most patients (76%) preferred telemedicine given testing was provided separately, 25 (18%) preferred in-person clinic visits, and 8 (6%) had no preference. Of the 25 patients over 65 years, 19 (76%) would choose telemedicine over the in-person clinic, and only 1 patient reported technical difficulties.
Conclusion:ACHD reported a positive experience with telemedicine. Technical limitations were infrequent even among the elderly. The majority of patients felt that their health care needs were addressed and would consider telemedicine over clinic visits. These data are important as payors move away from supporting telemedicine and hospitals restructure, with and without ongoing COVID-19 concerns.
新冠疫情导致远程医疗的使用增加。关于先天性心脏病成年患者（ACHD）对远程医疗的体验的数据有限。我们推测，由于其复杂的病史，ACHD患者会更倾向于亲自到门诊就诊而非远程医疗。
我们根据医疗保健研究与质量局的建议进行了一项由护士进行的电话调查，以评估2020年3月至2020年6月疫情早期ACHD患者远程医疗就诊后的体验。
在216名进行过远程医疗就诊的ACHD患者中，136名（63%）同意参与调查。平均年龄为45±18岁，大多数（65%）为视频问诊。大多数（98%）患者表示远程医疗就诊成功满足了他们的医疗需求。只有21名（15%）患者报告了技术问题。如果检测是单独提供的，大多数患者（76%）更喜欢远程医疗，25名（18%）更喜欢亲自到门诊就诊，8名（6%）没有偏好。在65岁以上的25名患者中，19名（76%）会选择远程医疗而非亲自到门诊就诊，只有1名患者报告了技术困难。
ACHD患者报告了对远程医疗的积极体验。即使在老年人中，技术限制也很少见。大多数患者认为他们的医疗需求得到了满足，并会考虑选择远程医疗而非门诊就诊。随着支付方不再支持远程医疗以及医院进行重组，无论是否存在持续的新冠疫情担忧，这些数据都很重要。
