Assessing the Availability of Teleconsultation and the Extent of Its Use in Malaysian Public Primary Care Clinics: Cross-sectional Study

Abstract

Background The integration of teleconsultation into health care systems as a complement to existing approaches to care is growing rapidly. There is, however, limited information on the extent of its implementation across low- and middle-income countries. Objective The aim of this study was to determine the availability and the extent of teleconsultation in Malaysian primary care clinics. Methods A cross-sectional study of public primary care clinics in Malaysia was conducted between November 2020 and December 2020. All clinics in Malaysia that see more than 300 daily patients were recruited. A web-based, self-administered questionnaire including questions on availability of the service, whether it uses video or telephone, and the types of services it provides was distributed to the medical officer in charge of each clinic. Results In total, 97.6% (249/255) of the clinics responded. Out of these clinics, 45.8% (114/249) provided teleconsultation. A majority of the clinics providing consultation (69/114, 60.5%) provided only telephone consultation, while 24.6% (28/114) of the clinics offered video and telephone consultation, and 14.9% (17/114) offered only video consultation. Eighty percent (92/114) of the clinics were located in urban areas. A breakdown by state showed that 17.5% (20/114) and 16.7% (19/114) of the clinics were from two larger states; other states comprised less than 10% each (range 7-9/114). For the clinics providing video consultation, funding for the service came mostly (42/45, 93%) from the Ministry of Health. Conversely, nearly 1 out of 4 (23/97) clinics that provided telephone consultation funded the service either from donations or through self-funding. Most of the clinics provided teleconsultation for diabetes and hypertension. Less than 50% of the clinics with teleconsultation used it for follow up with allied health care providers or pharmacists (video consultation, 20/45; telephone consultation, 36/97). Conclusions Our findings show that telephone consultation is more widely used than video consultation, despite a quarter of its funding being self-subsidized or obtained through donations. Also, teleconsultation was less utilized by allied health care providers and pharmacists. Plans for the expansion of teleconsultation in Malaysian primary health care should take into consideration these findings to ensure a better and more cost-effective implementation of the service.

Exploring the Need for Mobile Application in Stroke Management by Informal Caregivers: A Qualitative Study

“…Digitalization transforms healthcare and promotes teams to work in a way that is integrated, flexible and interoperable, and enabled digitally cared environment leverages [14]. Digital health benefits personnel to make use of technologies, empowering patients in terms of self-management and caregivers' involvement, thus improving patients' wellbeing [15]. Furthermore, Malaysia continues to have a scarcity of teleconsultation services in public primary healthcare clinics, with low usage among medical professionals [16].…”

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Antibiotic Utilisation in Malaysian Primary Care Clinics: An Interrupted Time Series Analysis

“…Data from the Ministry of Health show a nearly 40% decline in the number of outpatient visits at public clinics, especially during the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic [ 16 ]. Due to the risk of virus transmission, measures to limit crowding in primary care clinics were in place, including scheduled appointments and a shift from physical to teleconsultation [ 17 , 18 ]. The decline in contagions and the incidence of infectious disease was due to various measures implemented to prevent and control the spread of COVID-19, e.g., social isolation, active identification, quarantine of close contacts, use of personal protective equipment, and hand and environmental hygiene [ 1 ].…”

Telemedicine pada Layanan Tuberkulosis (Literature Review)

“…Telekonsultasi kurang dimanfaatkan oleh Penyedia layanan. Ini bisa menjadi masukan dalam mempertimbangkan implementasi telemedicine yang lebih baik dan hemat biaya [17].…”