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Telehealth Research, Reports and Surveys
Chartis Group: Telehealth Accounts for About Ten Percent of Outpatient Visits (11/9) – Data and analysis provided by the Chartis Group and Kythera Labs found that telehealth grew in popularity between 2020 and 2022, ultimately gaining the reputation of being considered a lasting option for health care delivery approaches. Most notably, telehealth accounts for 10 percent of all outpatient visits, significantly higher than the one percent before the pandemic. Behavioral health specialties remain the clinical leader of telehealth adoption, which represents 57 percent of all outpatient visits within that clinical service domain. Telehealth use was highest among younger adults ages 18 to 44, accounting for 15 percent of total outpatient visits in June. The option was used least among adults age 65 and older, accounting for just five percent of outpatient visits. These findings suggest telehealth can be a viable solution in more clinical specialties and with broader patient groups than might be expected. For additional coverage, see MobiHealth News, PR Newswire, and mHealth Intelligence.
Health Affairs: Use of And Willingness To Use Video Telehealth Through The COVID-19 Pandemic (11/7) – According to a report published in Health Affairs, during the COVID-19 pandemic, there was an increase in willingness to use video telehealth. Researchers found that from February 2019 to March 2021, there was an overall increase in willingness to use video telehealth from 50.8 to 62.2 percent. Black adults and adults with lower educational attainment had especially pronounced increases. Before the pandemic, Black adults were less willing to use telehealth than those of other races or ethnicities, with 42 percent reporting willingness in February 2019 compared with 67 percent one year into the pandemic, which was as high or higher than other racial or ethnic groups. Findings suggest that willingness to use telehealth can and does change over time in response to changing circumstances. For additional coverage, see the RAND Corporation press release, Fierce Healthcare, and US News & World Report.
Patient Experience Journal: Patient Satisfaction with Telemedicine About Equal to In-Person Visits (11/7) – A study published in Patient Experience Journal found that patients were just as satisfied with telemedicine visits as in-person appointments during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study reviewed 307,185 patient surveys by the Mayo Clinic and found no significant differences in patient ratings of telemedicine visits and in-person clinic visits from July 1, 2020, to June 30, 2021. Overall, primary care earned scores of 84.3 percent for telemedicine compared to 85.1 percent for in-person visits. Family medicine ratings were tied at 84.7 percent for telemedicine or in-person appointments. This study demonstrated that patient satisfaction with telemedicine visits was non-inferior to in-person outpatient visits during the study timeframe. For additional coverage, see Medical Economics.
MedPage Today: Telehealth Training May Address Shortages for Pediatric Mental Health Services (11/7) – An initiative designed to cross-train social work students to provide mental health services remotely to children and adolescents increased confidence and interest in providing those services after graduation. The trial initiative, presented at the 2022 Neuroscience Education Institute Congress, found that 90 percent of students could successfully conduct a telemental health visit. Created and run by nurse practitioners, the training was designed to be incorporated into the curriculum of interprofessional students but focused on social work and nursing programs. The training was developed to meet the Institute of Medicine's recommendation that all educational institutions add telemental health training for professions that provide mental health services.
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