Medical Area Department, Internal Medicine Unit, Castelli Hospital, Rome, Italy.
Saint Camillus International University of Health Sciences, Rome, Italy.
Front Public Health. 2024 Jun 28;12:1370555. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1370555. eCollection 2024.
Telemedicine applications present virtually limitless prospects for innovating and enhancing established and new models of patient care in the field of Internal Medicine. Although there is a wide range of innovative technological solutions in Europe, there are overarching elements associated with such technologies when applied to the practices of Internal Medicine specialists. The European Federation of Internal Medicine (EFIM) strongly advocates for active leadership and influence from the Internal Medicine societies and specialist physicians across Europe in the development and application of telemedicine and digital technologies in healthcare. This position paper's conclusions were drawn via Delphi method, which was developed collaboratively from July 2021 to December 2023. The panel, consisting of experts in clinical medicine, public health, health economics and statistics, assessed various aspects related to telemedicine. Participants assigned scores on a Likert scale reflecting perceived value and potential risks. The findings were consolidated in a comprehensive checklist aligning with relevant literature and a SWOT analysis. Specifically, key issues that need to be addressed include promoting the professional development of e-health competencies in the healthcare and medical workforce, using educational campaigns to promote digital literacy among patients and caregivers, designing and implementing telemedicine applications tailored to local conditions and needs and considering the ethical and legal contexts under which these applications are employed. Importantly, there is currently no consensus on care models or standardized protocols among European Internal Medicine specialists regarding the utilization of telemedicine. This position paper aims to outline the opportunities and challenges associated with the application of telemedicine in Internal Medical practice in Europe.
远程医疗应用为创新和加强内科领域现有的和新的患者护理模式提供了无限的前景。尽管欧洲有各种各样的创新技术解决方案，但当这些技术应用于内科专家的实践时，存在着与之相关的总体要素。欧洲内科医学联合会（EFIM）强烈主张欧洲的内科医学学会和专科医生积极发挥领导作用，并对远程医疗和数字技术在医疗保健中的发展和应用施加影响。本立场文件的结论是通过德尔菲法得出的，该方法于 2021 年 7 月至 2023 年 12 月共同制定。该小组由临床医学、公共卫生、卫生经济学和统计学方面的专家组成，评估了与远程医疗相关的各个方面。参与者根据反映感知价值和潜在风险的李克特量表对各项进行评分。研究结果与相关文献和 SWOT 分析相一致，整合在一份全面的清单中。具体而言，需要解决的关键问题包括在医疗保健和医疗保健劳动力中促进电子健康能力的专业发展，通过教育活动提高患者和护理人员的数字素养，设计和实施适合当地条件和需求的远程医疗应用程序，并考虑在这些应用程序使用的道德和法律背景下。重要的是，欧洲内科专家在远程医疗的使用方面，目前还没有关于护理模式或标准化协议的共识。本立场文件旨在概述远程医疗在欧洲内科医学实践中的应用所带来的机遇和挑战。
