Patients' perceptions of a telemedicine specialty clinic

Abstract

We studied patients' perceptions of telemedicine (interactive video) as a means of delivering specialist oncology/haematology care. Semistructured telephone interviews were performed with 22 patients attending a tele-oncology/haematology clinic in Kansas. Interviews were audio-taped and thematic content analysis of the transcripts was done. The response rate was 96%. All participants expressed satisfaction with their tele-consultations. For 50% of respondents, satisfaction with the tele-oncology/haematology clinic was qualified by two factors: participants also saw the specialist in person on occasions and the clinic was perceived as providing mainly a 'monitoring' function. In addition, 9 of the 22 patients expressed concern about the role of the nurse as a proxy for the doctor in performing certain parts of the physical examination. Overall, participants valued improved access to specialist services but had clear views as to the limitations of such a service. As the use of telecommunications technology grows, patient perspectives merit greater attention.

Sleep Telemedicine: A Survey Study of Patient Preferences

“…Video appointments could address a variety of the burdens associated with in-person visits listed by patients in this survey. For example, the time, cost, and inconvenience associated with travel could be ameliorated by a video visit option (Table 2), as has been reported for example in pediatrics [20] and oncology [21]. In addition, the decreased utilization of scarce outpatient practice space due to offloading to telemedicine-based practice could free up space for patients requiring in-person consultation.…”

Specialist cancer care through Telehealth models

“…• High rates of satisfaction of telehealth models among patients and rural health professionals, [14][15][16] • Safety of chemotherapy supervision remotely, 17 • Cost savings to the health systems. 18,19 However, literature on true savings to the patients and their carers and survival outcomes is limited.…”

Acceptability of Telemedicine and Other Cancer Genetic Counseling Models of Service Delivery in Geographically Remote Settings

“…Although telegenetics holds promise for improving access to care, previous studies raise concern regarding the acceptability of novel communication technologies in improving access to healthcare (Garrett et al 2011;Hill et al 2012). There has been limited evaluation of clients' pre-use perceptions and attitudes regarding telegenetics as a model of service delivery in comparison with the i) traditional in-person model of care by a specialty-trained genetic counselor, and ii) services or components of services offered locally by non-genetic providers, (Brierley et al 2010;Greendale & Pyeritz, 2001;Guttmacher et al 2001;Mair et al 2000). In addition, studies are incomplete regarding the influence of patient factors (medical and sociodemographic) on model of care preference.…”