Comparison of Patient Perception and Satisfaction of Face-to-Face Versus Telemedicine Encounters in Hand Surgery

Abstract

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) surge has enabled the widespread usage of telemedicine (TM) and presents a unique opportunity to determine the hand surgery patients’ perception of care using validated patient satisfaction scores. Methods: Electronic surveys were distributed to patients aged 18 years and older who underwent a video TM encounter with a single surgeon at an academic medical center during the initial COVID-19 surge (March 23 to October 22, 2020). The study-specific questions were derived from the Press Ganey (PG) Medical Practice TM Survey and compared with institutional PG Outpatient Medical Practice Survey data. Three cohorts were defined: pre-COVID face-to-face, post-COVID TM, and post-COVID face-to-face. Results: Thirty of 65 TM patients (46.2%) responded. No differences in sex, age, or visit type were identified between cohorts. The TM cohort was more likely to live greater than 300 miles from the institution. Median response for all cohorts for the PG care provider and overall experience responses were “very good,” and no differences were identified between cohorts. Patient satisfaction with their TM experience was high with median satisfaction scores for arranging and connecting to a TM visit, talking with the provider over a video connection, and having the provider understand the clinical problem were “very good.” Patients in the TM cohort reported no difference in preference for face-to-face or TM visits. Conclusions: Patients are satisfied with TM as a substitute for face-to-face visits suggesting that TM can possibly be used to deliver comparable patient experience for hand surgery encounters.

Patient-reported experiences and outcomes of virtual care during COVID-19: a systematic review

“…Some examples include feeling comfortable in receiving care virtually (e.g. due to privacy) (n = 8, 17%) [ 17 – 25 ], feeling safe against COVID-19 (n = 5, 11%) [ 18 , 21 , 26 – 29 ], communication with healthcare providers (n = 31, 66%) [17, [ 17 , 20 – 24 , 30 – 43 ], the convenience of virtual care and saving time (n = 24, 51%) (e.g. minimizing barriers such as transportation, traffic, cost of gas and parking, and associated anxiety) [ 20 – 23 , 26 , 28 – 33 , 35 , 37 – 39 , 43 – 55 ], access to care (n = 9, 19%) [ 19 , 22 , 24 , 28 , 35 , 38 , 43 – 45 , 51 , 56 , 57 ], patient engagement in care (n = 4, 9%) [ 36 , 37 , 44 ], comfort in the technology/telehealth system (n = 17, 36%) [ 27 , 28 , 35 , 51 ], and not experiencing wait time delays in seeing their healthcare providers (n = 8, 17%) [ 22 , 28 , 46 , 50 , 54 ].…”

One Year of COVID-19: Lessons Learned in a Hand Trauma Center

“…Additionally, Atia et al [17] described checking up on patients less frequently, whereas most of authors used telemedicine to follow up with their patients [12,14,[22][23][24]. This is a method that proved its accuracy [25] and found satisfaction among patients [10,22,26], whereas surgeons had frequent issues [10,22]. The authors did not use telemedicine, and Toia et al [11] as well as Leti Acciaro et al [27] confirmed it might be an issue in Italy.…”