Opportunities and challenges for telehealth within, and beyond, a pandemic.
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Blandford A
PROVIDER: S-EPMC7417162 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Opportunities and challenges for telehealth within, and beyond, a pandemic.
Blandford Ann A Wesson Janet J Amalberti René R AlHazme Raed R Allwihan Ragad R
The Lancet. Global health 20200810 11
Similar Datasets
Project description:ObjectiveThe novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is an unexpected universal problem that has changed health care access across the world. Telehealth is an effective solution for health care delivery during disasters and public health emergencies. This study was conducted to summarize the opportunities and challenges of using telehealth in health care delivery during the COVID-19 pandemic.MethodsA structured search was performed in the Web of Science, PubMed, Science Direct, and Scopus databases, as well as the Google Scholar search engine, for studies published until November 4, 2020. The reviewers analyzed 112 studies and identified opportunities and challenges. This review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis (PRISMA) protocols. Quality appraisal was done according to the Mixed Methods Appraisal Tool (MMAT) version 2018. Thematic analysis was applied for data analysis.ResultsA total of 112 unique opportunities of telehealth application during the pandemic were categorized into 4 key themes, such as (1) clinical, (2) organizational, (3) technical, and (4) social, which were further divided into 11 initial themes and 26 unique concepts. Furthermore, 106 unique challenges were categorized into 6 key themes, such as (1) legal, (2) clinical, (3) organizational, (40 technical, (5) socioeconomic, and (6) data quality, which were divided into 16 initial themes and 37 unique concepts altogether. The clinical opportunities and legal challenges were the most frequent opportunities and challenges, respectively.ConclusionThe COVID-19 pandemic significantly accelerated the use of telehealth. This study could offer useful information to policymakers about the opportunities and challenges of implementing telehealth for providing accessible, safe, and efficient health care delivery to the patient population during and after COVID-19. Furthermore, it can assist policymakers to make informed decisions on implementing telehealth in response to the COVID-19 pandemic by addressing the obstacles ahead.
| S-EPMC8443403 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has created a challenging environment for sarcoma patients. Most oncology societies published guidelines or recommendations prioritizing sarcoma patients and established telehealth as an efficient method of approaching them. The aim of this review is the assessment of current evidence regarding the utilization of telemedicine in diagnosis, treatment modalities, telerehabilitation and satisfaction among sarcoma patients and healthcare providers (HP).MethodsThis systematic review was carried out using the databases PubMed and Ovid MEDLINE according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA).ResultsThe application of telemedicine to the management of sarcoma has yielded improved clinical and psychological outcomes. Specifically, significant progress has been demonstrated in the areas of tele-oncology and telerehabilitation during the last decade, and the COVID-19 outbreak has accelerated this transition toward them. Telehealth has been proven efficient in a wide spectrum of applications from consultations on physical therapy and psychological support to virtual care symptom management. Both HP and patients reported satisfaction with telehealth services at levels comparable to in-person visits.ConclusionsTelehealth has already unveiled many opportunities in tailoring individualized care, and its role in the management of sarcoma patients has been established in the post-COVID-19 era, as well.
| S-EPMC10378403 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundIndia, the seventh-largest country in the world and the second-most populated faces enormous challenges when it comes to healthcare. The country's healthcare system was close to collapse due to the detrimental effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Telehealth, which enables treating patients remotely, played a critical role during these challenging times. This systematic review investigates in detail the role of telehealth during COVID-19 and its application beyond the pandemic.MethodsDatabase searches on PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct and Web of Science were carried out for studies published on telehealth, and articles were included if they focused on any audio or video telehealth consultation during the pandemic in India. Findings were synthesised into three main themes: applications, benefits and challenges of telehealth services. Methodological quality was assessed using JBI critical appraisal tools.ResultsThe initial search on databases yielded 1143 articles. Of those, 19 met the eligibility criteria. Findings highlight the effective utilisation of telehealth across multiple medical specialities. Although insufficient technological infrastructure and other barriers due to the virtual consultation challenge the successful implementation of telehealth in India, it has the potential to bridge the rural-urban healthcare divide with cost-effective and easily accessible services.ConclusionHigh patient/provider satisfaction underscores the need to integrate telehealth into routine healthcare practices in the country. However, the review urges the government and healthcare practitioners to address the telehealth challenges with prime importance to ensure quality healthcare throughout the nation even after the pandemic.
| S-EPMC9810518 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC9359957 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundTelehealth services are rapidly embraced in uro-oncology due to the current coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.ObjectiveTo determine patients' perspective on adoption of telehealth as a response to the pandemic and its sustainability in the future.Design, setting, and participantsFollowing a COVID-19 outbreak, 101 patients with advanced genitourinary cancers are currently managed "virtually" for therapy administration at our tertiary care unit. They were surveyed about the current situation, and current and long-term employment of telehealth.InterventionRapid implementation of virtual patient management.Outcome measurements and statistical analysisPatients' perception of anxiety of COVID-19 and cancer, perspective on telehealth measures as a reaction to the current COVID-19 pandemic, and long-term acceptance were used as outcomes. Wilcoxon matched-pair signed rank test, chi-square test, and Mann-Whitney U test were performed.Results and limitationsOf 101 patients, 92 answered the questionnaire, with 71 (77.2%) responding virtually by e-mail or phone call. Anxiety of cancer (6/10, interquartile range [IQR] 3-8) superseded that of COVID-19 (four/10, IQR 2-5.25, p<0.001), and patients oppose temporary treatment interruption. Of the patients, 66.0% perceive their susceptibility to COVID-19 as equal to or lower than the general population and 52.2% believe that COVID-19 will not affect their therapy. In future, patients (62.6%) prefer to maintain in-person appointments as opposed to complete remote care, but accept remote care during the pandemic (eight/10, IQR 5-9). Beyond the crisis, maintaining telehealth has low preference rates (four/10, IQR 2-7), with high acceptance for external laboratory controls (60.9%) and online visit management (48.9%), but lower acceptance for remote treatment planning including staging discussions (44.6%) and for referral to secondary care oncologists (17.4%).ConclusionsDespite the pandemic, cancer remains the key concern and patients are not willing to compromise on their treatment. Rapid implementation of telehealth is tolerated well during the need of social distancing, with a clear "red line" concerning changes in existing patient-physician relationships. Balancing future implementation of telehealth while considering patients' demand for personal relationships will ensure human dignity in uro-oncology.Patient summaryWe queried patients with genitourinary cancers treated in an almost virtual setting following a local coronavirus outbreak. Acceptance of telehealth during the current situation is high; however, long-term implementation of the adapted services is less favored. We deduce that patient-physician relationship is crucial for cancer patients and needs to be balanced against measures for social distancing to forge the future management.
| S-EPMC7286644 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC7077926 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated the rapid uptake of telehealth in cancer care and in other fields. Many of the changes made in routine clinical practice could be embedded beyond the duration of the pandemic. This is intended as a practical guide to cancer clinicians and others in establishing and improving the quality of consultations performed by telehealth.
| S-EPMC8014764 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC8215875 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe rapid transition to telemedicine at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic required many providers to learn telemedicine "on the fly." As virtual care will likely remain a mainstay of outpatient medicine, it is imperative that telemedicine training be incorporated into graduate medical education.AimDesign a telemedicine curriculum for internal medicine residents based on principles of experiential learning.SettingVA-based internal medicine primary care clinic.ParticipantsSixteen first-year internal medicine residents participated in the curriculum.Program descriptionThe curriculum included a didactic session followed by four simulated patient encounters focused on troubleshooting technical issues, performing the virtual physical exam, coordinating team-based care, and tackling emergencies.Program evaluationParticipants reported minimal previous experience with telemedicine. After completing the training, resident confidence in conducting video visits increased from an average score of four to seven (on a 10-point scale). Residents were more likely to agree that video visits would allow them to build bonds and effectively address their patients' needs. This increased confidence persisted at 3 months after training.DiscussionUsing experiential learning, we identified strategies which increased the confidence of internal medicine trainees in conducting telemedicine visits. Further research is needed to validate our findings across different practice settings.
| S-EPMC8294316 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC10944905 | biostudies-literature