348 The New Normal? – a Survey of Patients’ and Clinicians’ Satisfaction of Remote Consultations During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Aim Remote consultations (RC) were implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic with the aim of preventing transmission of the virus. We conducted a survey to assess patients’ and clinicians’ satisfaction of RC. Method Two online surveys were created for patient and clinician feedback, and each recorded a cohorts' opinions on various aspects of RC. The surveys were distributed to Urology, General and Vascular surgery departments at three NHS trusts. Patient feedback was collected over the phone, whilst clinicians completed the survey online. Results Overall, responses from 99 patients and 22 clinicians were collected. 89.9% of patients were either ‘satisfied or very satisfied’ with RC, compared to 77.2% of clinicians who practiced RC. 93.9 % of patients felt they were able to discuss all their concerns during their RC. However, outside of the COVID-19 setting 50% of patients and 59.1% of clinicians would prefer face to face consultations. Both cohorts reported adherence to social distancing and convenience as key advantages of RC; furthermore 68.2% of clinicians thought RC were economically beneficial. 100% of clinicians felt the inability to examine patients was a disadvantage of RC and 33.8% of patients agreed with this. Conclusions The majority of feedback from patients and clinicians was positive for RC. However, in future approximately 55% of both cohorts would prefer face to face consultations. Looking forward, we believe RC can form a part of routine practice in selected groups of patients, where it could potentially save time and money without compromising patient or clinician satisfaction.

Telemedicine in Vascular Surgery During COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review and Narrative Synthesis

“…Eleven studies were retrospective cohort studies12–19,21–23, and one was a case series 20 . Eleven studies were reported as a full text12,14–23 while one was an abstract from a poster presentation 13 . Of the 12 included studies, six studies reported data on patients with varying vascular conditions12–14,19,22,23, whereas the other six studies looked specifically at managing wounds including diabetic ulcers using telemedicine15–18,20,21.…”

“…These studies took place in the United Kingdom 12 , 13 , Italy 16 , 18 , United States 21 , 23 and India 17 , 20 (two studies for each country). The other four studies were undertaken in Qatar, Australia, Colombia and China14,15,19,22.…”

“…The types of telemedicine used reported by eleven studies12,14–23 included video consultation only (N studies=2) or telephone consultation only (N studies=1) or both (N studies=8), with no data on 1 study 13 . In five studies telemedicine was a new intervention, introduced into clinical practice as a direct response to the pandemic 13 , 17 , 21 , 22 , 23 , whilst telemedicine was in use pre-pandemic in two studies 19 , 20 (no data on five studies)12,16–19.…”

“…Seven studies (N patients = 1576) reported patients perception with the use of telemedicine during the pandemic 12 , 13 , 15 , 16 , 19 , 22 , 23 . All studies recorded patient’s satisfaction via quantitative questionnaires given to patients following the implementation of telemedicine.…”

“…Five studies (N patients=1305) reported that between 74% and 100% of patients who used telemedicine during the pandemic were satisfied with it 12 , 13 , 15 , 16 , 19 , 22 , 23 . Lacopi et al asked patients (N=206) to give a score (1=not at all useful, 5=most useful) as to how they useful felt telemedicine was during lockdown, and reported a mean score of 4.35+/- 0.28 16 .…”