Department of Spine Surgery, Hospital for Special Surgery, New York, NY.
Spine (Phila Pa 1976). 2024 Feb 1;49(3):208-213. doi: 10.1097/BRS.0000000000004615. Epub 2023 Mar 1.
Retrospective cohort study.
The objectives of the present study were to (1) define telemedicine utilization rates during and after the initial height of the COVID-19 lockdown period and (2) determine patient satisfaction with telemedicine during and after the initial height of the COVID-19 lockdown period for spine patients at an orthopedic specialty hospital.
Previous studies have shown high patient satisfaction with telemedicine during the initial height of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there exists limited data about spine telemedicine utilization and patient satisfaction after the reopening of in-person office visits and the easing of restrictions on elective surgical care.
All patients who had an in-person or telemedicine visit at an urban tertiary specialty hospital from April 1, 2020 to April 15, 2021 were identified. Rates of overall telemedicine utilization over time were delineated. Patient satisfaction with telemedicine, as assessed through a series of questionnaires, was also evaluated over time.
Overall, 60,368 patients were identified. Of these, 19,568 patients (32.4%) had telemedicine visit. During the peak initial coronavirus lockdown period, the rate of overall telemedicine utilization, on average, was greater than 90%. After the peak period, the rate of overall telemedicine utilization on average was at ~29% of all visits per month. The percentage of patients who would have been definitely comfortable if the telemedicine visit had been in-person increased over the entire study period ( P <0.001). Despite this, patient satisfaction based on survey responses remained statistically similar throughout the study period ( P >0.05).
The rate of telemedicine utilization in spine patients remains high, at ~one-third of all visits, even after the initial peak coronavirus lockdown period. In addition, patient satisfaction with telemedicine remained consistent throughout the study period, regardless of pandemic restrictions on in-person visits.
回顾性队列研究。
本研究的目的是：(1) 定义在 COVID-19 封锁初期和之后期间的远程医疗使用率，(2) 确定在骨科专科医院的脊柱患者在 COVID-19 封锁初期和之后期间对远程医疗的满意度。
先前的研究表明，在 COVID-19 大流行的初期，患者对远程医疗的满意度很高。然而，关于脊柱远程医疗的使用率和在恢复门诊就诊以及放宽对选择性手术护理的限制后患者满意度的数据有限。
确定了 2020 年 4 月 1 日至 2021 年 4 月 15 日期间在城市三级专业医院进行门诊或远程医疗就诊的所有患者。描述了随时间推移的总体远程医疗使用率。还评估了随时间推移的远程医疗患者满意度，通过一系列问卷进行评估。
总共确定了 60368 名患者。其中，19568 名患者(32.4%)进行了远程医疗就诊。在冠状病毒封锁的高峰期，远程医疗的总体使用率平均超过 90%。高峰期过后，远程医疗的总体使用率平均每月约占所有就诊的 29%。在整个研究期间，愿意选择远程医疗就诊的患者比例增加( P <0.001)。尽管如此，基于调查回复的患者满意度在整个研究期间仍保持统计学相似( P >0.05)。
即使在 COVID-19 封锁的最初高峰期过后，脊柱患者的远程医疗使用率仍保持高位，约占所有就诊的三分之一。此外，无论对门诊就诊的大流行限制如何，患者对远程医疗的满意度在整个研究期间保持一致。
3 级。
