Telehealth Research, Reports and Surveys
Annals of Family Medicine: The Telemedicine Experience in Primary Care Practices in the United States (5/24) - The need to rapidly implement telemedicine in primary care during the COVID-19 pandemic was addressed differently by various practices. Using qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with primary care practice leaders, the researchers of this study identified four overarching themes, including a need for more explicit telehealth visit triage guidelines following the COVID-19 public health emergency. The study adds to research surrounding telehealth use within the primary care arena in the US. For additional coverage, see Medical Economics and mHealth Intelligence.
Association of Community Cancer Centers: Digital Tools in Cancer Care (5/23) - The Association of Community Cancer Centers conducted a survey, which found that providers, patients, and caregivers were willing to utilize digital, remote patient-monitoring (RPM) tools to report symptoms throughout anti-cancer treatments. Key survey results found more than half (60 percent) of providers who implemented an RPM program said it added “10 hours or less” to a weekly workload. Of the 60 percent, almost half (40 percent) said the program did not “significantly disrupt workflow,” with 24 percent noting the technology actually improved workflow. For additional coverage, see Healthcare Innovation.
Health Services Research: State Medicaid and Private Telemedicine Coverage Requirements and Telemedicine Use (5/18) - Medicaid coverage of telehealth services between 2013 and 2019 was associated with significant increases in telehealth use and health care access. Medicaid telehealth coverage requirements were linked to a 6.01 percentage-point increase in the use of live video communication. Additionally, states with a Medicaid telehealth coverage requirement throughout the study period had substantially higher rates of telehealth use initially than those that added a policy. Access to covered telemedicine services could alleviate some of these barriers by eliminating the need to travel to see a provider, which may explain in part the larger response to telemedicine coverage among Medicaid enrollees. For additional coverage, see mHealth Intelligence.
JAMA Health Forum: Overall and Telehealth Addiction Treatment Utilization by Age, Race, Ethnicity, and Socioeconomic Status in California After COVID-19 Policy Changes (5/19) - This cohort study found that disparities in addiction treatment utilization were not exacerbated following expansion of telehealth during the early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers examined whether there were differences in overall and telehealth addiction treatment utilization after telehealth policy changes during the COVID-19 pandemic by age, race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Additionally, the findings show that the odds of initiating addiction treatment via telehealth rose by 38.5 percentage points between 2019 and 2020. For additional coverage, see mHealth Intelligence.
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