Patient Satisfaction with Use of Telemedicine in University Clinic of Psychiatry: Skopje, North Macedonia During COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Background: There is increasing interest in the use of telemedicine as a means of health care delivery especially in circumstances of pandemics. This is partly because technological advances have made the equipment less expensive and simpler to use and partly because increasing health care costs and patient expectations have increased the need to find alternative modes of health care delivery. Introduction: Telemedicine and telepsychiatry, in particular, are rapidly becoming important delivery approaches to providing clinical care and information to patients in cases wherein the medical resources and the patients are very hard to be brought together with respect to rules of behavior in case of epidemics. The reliance on technology to bridge the obstacles between the patients (consumers) and medical resources (providers) can create problems that impact service delivery and outcomes, but in cases such as this (COVID-19 pandemics), this is virtually the only tool for providing clinical care and information to patients. Materials and Methods: A client satisfaction survey was undertaken in a daily hospital (a part of University Clinic of Psychiatry in Skopje). The anonymous modified self-report questionnaire (short form patient satisfaction questionnaire [PSQ-18]) covering demographic, gender, and age variables was endorsed by 28 participants. The mean age of the subjects was 40.25-22 years, with a small majority of men (18 participants) versus women (11 participants). Results: Overall satisfaction with psychiatric care was high (80.22%). None of the demographic or other variables correlated significantly with satisfaction. Discussion: We had to reduce rate and time length of our face-to-face contacts with patients as a result of pandemics but they were able to reach their doctors virtually at all times. Conclusions: Many mental health professionals are using widely available, commercial software downloaded from the internet to provide care directly to a patient's home.

A Review of Patient Satisfaction and Experience with Telemedicine: A Virtual Solution During and Beyond COVID-19 Pandemic

“…26 For rehabilitation, 80% of the virtual visits were for follow-ups for established issues. 27 The main benefits of telemedicine reported by patients were time saved due to lesser traveling 3,7,20,22,23,[27][28][29][30][31][32][33] and waiting in queues, 20,23,29,31,34 cost efficiency, 3,27,29,30,32,33,35 convenience, 7,26,27,31,33,[36][37][38] , and accessibility. 7,25,32,[35][36]39 Telemedicine was found satisfactory on various outcome measures such as addressing patients' concerns and questions, 38 communication with health care providers, 3,32 development of a treatment plan, 25,27 comprehensibility of disease, 31 usefulness, 23,24,…”

Remote assessment in adults with Autism or ADHD: A service user satisfaction survey

“…In the context of the COVID-19 global pandemic, remote telecommunication methods have become much more common place in mental health settings. A study conducted at a University Clinic reported using the short form patient satisfaction questionnaire (PSQ-18) [22] that overall satisfaction with psychiatric care was high [23] whilst another observed that the frequency of patient contact within a community psychiatry service was maintained using remote telecommunication consultations and that prescribing practices were largely unaffected [24]. For adults, the COVID-19 related literature in Autism is not developed, although there is some discussion in the literature pertaining to children [25].…”

Integrating telemedicine to support digital health care for the management of COVID-19 pandemic

“…Additionally, in an effort to fast track COVID-19 tests, the US Food and Drug Administration has waived the standard regulations to accelerate and permit test makers to commercialize scientifically valid products in the US [34]. Also, medical care systems in Houston, Texas developed a remote communication channel between emergency responders and physicians to help with triaging [6,9]. Virtual home treatment for high risk individuals and remote/ digital Intensive Care Unit (ICU) monitoring is also being used to decrease hospital staff contact with patients with confirmed or suspected cases of COVID-19 [8,42].…”

“…Evidence from the literature [6][7][8] suggests that there is increasing interest in the adoption of telemedicine to provide health care especially due to the pandemic. Telemedicine, which was introduced in the early twentieth century, involves the use of telecommunication and online technologies, including mobile devices and computers for delivery of health care or services [9].…”