Satisfaction with the use of telehealth during COVID-19: An integrative review

Abstract

Background The novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has defined 2020 thus far. Businesses, social and religious gatherings, travel, and almost all forms of transportation shut down to halt the spread of COVID-19. People were ordered to quarantine in place, and the world appears to go into a standstill. In the midst of being quarantined people with acute and chronic conditions still require medical care and treatment. An alternative way for people to receive needed health care was necessary. Hence, we saw an unprecedented surge in telehealth. With this unprecedented surge in use of telehealth, there is matter of delivering quality care. Objective Guided by the Donabedian Model, the purpose of this integrative review was to examine current evidence on patient and healthcare provider's satisfaction with the use of telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic. Design An integrative review of the literature Data sources The literature review was conducted utilizing PubMED, CINAHL, Google Scholar and Cochrane Library databases. Inclusion criteria were studies published from January 2020 to July 11, 2020, published and translated in English language, and studies that evaluated patients and providers satisfaction with the use of telehealth or telemedicine during COVID-19. Eighteen articles were included in this review. Review methods An evaluation matrix was developed to collect data from the included articles. The articles were appraised using Fineout-Overholt & Gallagher-Ford Rapid Critical Appraisal Checklist for Descriptive Studies and Rapid Critical Appraisal of Evidence-Based Practice Implementation or Quality Improvement Projects (Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt, 2015). Authors independently appraised each article using the appropriate appraisal tools. Results Ten of the articles (53%) included were studies conducted in the United States. Sixteen out of 18 studies evaluated patient satisfaction and five studies examined healthcare providers’ satisfaction with the use of telehealth. The majority of telehealth services offered were by subspecialists. Overall, patients and healthcare providers have high level of satisfaction with the use of telehealth during COVID-19 pandemic. Many patients and healthcare providers reported willingness to continue using telehealth after the pandemic. Conclusion This integrative review provided additional evidence on patient and healthcare provider's satisfaction with the use of telehealth. Findings in this review may not be surprising as individuals, healthcare providers, and health systems needed to adopt the use telehealth due to necessity. However, the results for telehealth are promising.

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

“…An integrative literature review methodology was employed to present evidence similar to prior COVID-19 study [9]. Integrative literature review aims to expediently assess prior studies that are appropriate to the specific research topic in order to present a fair assessment of an investigated topic using a rigorous and trustworthy approach [31][32][33].…”

“…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]. It can be employed remotely over the phone or via real-time video consultations using an interactive two-way telecommunications system [1,2,10].…”

Comparing telehealth to traditional office visits for patient management in the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study in a respiratory assessment clinic

“…6,7 Telehealth has been shown in some care settings to be equivalent to in-person care, and patient satisfaction has previously been shown to be high. [8][9][10] Telehealth may decrease barriers to access to primary care services (e.g. transportation and childcare) and can provide access to the health system that has not always been available.…”

The Potential of mHealth as a Game Changer for the Management of Sickle Cell Disease in India

“…Various mHealth apps have been clinically tested for their effect on compliance for many chronic diseases worldwide [7][8][9][10][11] and there are mounting indications that support the feasibility and applicability of mHealth interventions for better compliance in managing chronic diseases in pediatric patients as well. During the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, mHealth has emerged as a silver bullet, not only for teleconsultations and telemonitoring of patients with chronic diseases, but also for increasing health care delivery in remote areas [12][13][14].…”