Transitioning to Telemedicine During COVID-19: Impact on Perceptions and Use of Telemedicine Procedures for the Diagnosis of Autism in Toddlers.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Wagner L
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8175230 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Telemedicine tools have potential for increasing access to diagnostic services for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Past work has utilized tele-assessment procedures in which remote psychologists observe administration of interactive screening instruments by trained, on-site providers. Although promising, this approach relies on two clinicians, limiting its efficiency and scalability. The present study examined the use, acceptability, and parents' perceptions of two caregiver-mediated tools for assessing ASD risk in toddlers, in which remote clinicians guided parents to complete interactive screening activities with their children. Most parents found tele-assessment to be comfortable, and many reported liking the parent-led nature of these tools. Parents also offered constructive feedback, which was used to modify the tele-assessment process for future study.
| S-EPMC7266386 | biostudies-literature
Project description:LAY ABSTRACT:This was a project in primary care for young children (1-2?years old). We tested a parent questionnaire on a tablet. This tablet questionnaire asked questions to see whether the child may have autism. We compared the paper and pencil version of the questionnaire to the tablet questionnaire. We read the medical charts for the children until they were 4?years old to see whether they ended up having autism. We found that doctors were more likely to recommend an autism evaluation when a parent used the tablet questionnaire. We think that the tablet's automatic scoring feature helped the doctors. We also think that the doctors benefited from the advice the tablet gave them.
| S-EPMC7541635 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe term "telemedicine" refers to the use of communication technology to deliver health care remotely. The COVID-19 pandemic had substantial impacts on health care delivery from 2020 onward, and it was necessary to adapt high-quality care in a manner that limited the potential for viral exposure of both patients and health care workers. Physicians employed video, phone, and electronic written (e-consultation) visits, all of which provided quality of care comparable to that of face-to-face visits while reducing barriers of adopting telemedicine.ObjectiveThis study sought to assess physicians' perspectives and attitudes regarding the use of telemedicine in Riyadh hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic. The main objects of assessment were as follows: (1) physicians' experience using telemedicine, (2) physicians' willingness to use telemedicine in the future, (3) physicians' perceptions of patient experiences, and (4) the influence of telemedicine on burnout.MethodsThis study employed SurveyMonkey to develop and distribute an anonymous 28-question cross-sectional survey among physicians across all specialty disciplines in Riyadh hospitals. A chi-square test was used to determine the level of association between variables, with significance set to P<.05.ResultsThe survey was distributed among 500 physicians who experienced telemedicine between October 2021 and December 2021. A total of 362 doctors were included, of whom 28.7% (n=104) were consultants, 30.4% (n=110) were specialists, and 40.9% (n=148) were residents. Male doctors formed the majority 56.1% (n=203), and female doctors accounted for 43.9% (n=159). Overall, 34% (n=228) agreed or somewhat agreed that the "quality of care during telemedicine is comparable with that of face-to-face visits." Approximately 70% (n=254) believed that telemedicine consultation is cost-effective. Regarding burnout, 4.1% (n=15), 7.5% (n=27), and 27.3% (n=99) of the doctors reported feeling burnout every day, a few times a week, and a few times per month, respectively.ConclusionsThe physicians had generally favorable attitudes toward telemedicine, believing that its quality of health care delivery is comparable to that of in-person care. However, further research is necessary to determine how physicians' attitudes toward telemedicine have changed since the pandemic and how this virtual technology can be used to improve physicians' professional and personal well-being.
| S-EPMC9278404 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThe rapid spread of the coronavirus disease 2019 and the implementation of quarantine in many European countries led to a swift change in health care delivery. Telemedicine was implemented in many otolaryngological departments to ensure the continuous care. The purpose of this study is to report our experience about telemedicine in 86 patients consulting virtually in our departments.MethodsA total of 86 patients benefited from telemedicine consultation from April to Mai May 2020. Patients and physicians were invited to fulfill a satisfaction survey over the 3 days after the consultation.ResultsPatients consulted in the following fields: laryngology, voice and swallowing (N=15; 17.4%), head and neck or plastic surgery (N=34; 39.5%), rhinology (N=31; 36.1%) and otology (N=6; 7.0%). Practitioners estimated that the clinical examination would not have changed the consultation issue in 73.2% of cases. The realization of delayed clinical examination was rapidly necessary in 9.3% of cases and useless in 33.7% of cases. Five percent of patients estimated that the consultation did not bring reliable conclusion. Although the majority of patient (87.7%) would recommend telemedicine consultation to friend/family in the context of pandemic, only 44.6% would accept to replace office- consultation by telemedicine consultation outside the pandemic.ConclusionTelemedicine appears to be an interesting alternative approach in situation of pandemic and lock-down. Because the patient motivation to further participate to telemedicine appears to be conditioned by the context, efforts are still required to understand the patient perception, satisfaction and fears in view of future implementation outside pandemic.
| S-EPMC7848874 | biostudies-literature
Project description:ObjectiveThe purpose of the study was to examine use of the Modified Checklist for Autism in Toddlers (M-CHAT) as an autism-specific screening instrument in a large, geographically diverse pediatrics-based sample.MethodsThe M-CHAT and the M-CHAT Follow-Up (M-CHAT/F) were used to screen 18,989 toddlers at pediatric well-child visits in 2 US geographic regions. Pediatricians directly referred children to ascertain potential missed screening cases. Screen-positive children received the M-CHAT/F; children who continued to screen positive after the M-CHAT/F received a diagnostic evaluation.ResultsResults indicated that 54% of children who screened positive on the M-CHAT and M-CHAT/F presented with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and 98% presented with clinically significant developmental concerns warranting intervention. An M-CHAT total score cutoff of ?3 identifies nearly all screen-positive cases, and for ease of scoring the use of only the M-CHAT total score cutoff is recommended. An M-CHAT total score of 7 serves as an appropriate clinical cutoff, and providers can bypass the M-CHAT/F and refer immediately to evaluation and intervention if a child obtains a score of ?7.ConclusionsThis study provides empirical support for the utility of population screening for ASD with the use of the M-CHAT in a primary care setting. Results suggest that the M-CHAT continues to be an effective screening instrument for ASD when the 2-step screening process is used. The M-CHAT is widely used at pediatric offices, and this study provides updated results to facilitate use and scoring of the M-CHAT by clinical providers.
| S-EPMC3608483 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundRecent neuroimaging studies have highlighted differences in cerebral maturation in individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in comparison to typical development. For instance, the contrast of the gray-white matter boundary is decreased in adults with ASD. To determine how gray-white matter boundary integrity relates to early ASD phenotypes, we used a regional structural MRI index of gray-white matter contrast (GWC) on a sample of toddlers with a hereditary high risk for ASD.Materials and methodsWe used a surface-based approach to compute vertex-wise GWC in a longitudinal cohort of toddlers at high-risk for ASD imaged twice between 12 and 24 months (n = 20). A full clinical assessment of ASD-related symptoms was performed in conjunction with imaging and again at 3 years of age for diagnostic outcome. Three outcome groups were defined (ASD, n = 9; typical development, n = 8; non-typical development, n = 3).ResultsASD diagnostic outcome at age 3 was associated with widespread increases in GWC between age 12 and 24 months. Many cortical regions were affected, including regions implicated in social processing and language acquisition. In parallel, we found that early onset of ASD symptoms (i.e., prior to 18-months) was specifically associated with slower GWC rates of change during the second year of life. These alterations were found in areas mainly belonging to the central executive network.LimitationsOur study is the first to measure maturational changes in GWC in toddlers who developed autism, but given the limited size of our sample results should be considered exploratory and warrant further replication in independent and larger samples.ConclusionThese preliminary results suggest that ASD is linked to early alterations of the gray-white matter boundary in widespread brain regions. Early onset of ASD diagnosis constitutes an independent clinical parameter associated with a specific corresponding neurobiological developmental trajectory. Altered neural migration and/or altered myelination processes potentially explain these findings.
| S-EPMC8248433 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Play helps to develop social skills. Children with autism show deviances in their play behavior that may be associated with delays in their social development. In this study, we investigated manipulative, functional and symbolic play behavior of toddlers with and without autism (mean age: 26.45, SD 5.63). The results showed that the quality of interaction between the child and the caregiver was related to the development of play behavior. In particular, security of attachment was related to better play behavior. When the developmental level of the child is taken into account, the attachment relationship of the child with the caregiver at this young age is a better predictor of the level of play behavior than the child's disorder.
| S-EPMC2335292 | biostudies-other
Project description:BackgroundThe COVID-19 pandemic has transformed cancer care with the rapid expansion of telemedicine, but given the limited use of telemedicine in oncology, concerns have been raised about the quality of care being delivered. We assessed the patient experience with telemedicine in routine radiation oncology practice to determine satisfaction, quality of care, and opportunities for optimization.Patients and methodsPatients seen within a multistate comprehensive cancer center for prepandemic office visits and intrapandemic telemedicine visits in December 2019 through June 2020 who completed patient experience questionnaires were evaluated. Patient satisfaction between office and telemedicine consultations were compared, patient visit-type preferences were assessed, and factors associated with an office visit preference were determined.ResultsIn total, 1,077 patients were assessed (office visit, n=726; telemedicine, n=351). The telemedicine-consult survey response rate was 40%. No significant differences were seen in satisfaction scores between office and telemedicine consultations, including the appointment experience versus expectation, quality of physician's explanation, and level of physician concern and friendliness. Among telemedicine survey respondents, 45% and 34% preferred telemedicine and office visits, respectively, and 21% had no preference for their visit type. Most respondents found their confidence in their physician (90%), understanding of the treatment plan (88%), and confidence in their treatment (87%) to be better or no different than with an office visit. Patients with better performance status and who were married/partnered were more likely to prefer in-person office visit consultations (odds ratio [OR], 1.04 [95% CI, 1.00-1.08]; P=.047, and 2.41 [95% CI, 1.14-5.47]; P=.009, respectively). Patients with telephone-only encounters were more likely to report better treatment plan understanding with an office visit (OR, 2.25; 95% CI, 1.00-4.77; P=.04).ConclusionsThis study is the first to assess telemedicine in routine radiation oncology practice, and found high patient satisfaction and confidence in their care. Optimization of telemedicine in oncology should be a priority, specifically access to audiovisual capabilities that can improve patient-oncologist communication.
| S-EPMC8254817 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Autism is often described as a disorder of neural synchronization. However, it is unknown how early in development synchronization abnormalities emerge and whether they are related to the development of early autistic behavioral symptoms. Here, we show that disrupted synchronization is evident in the spontaneous cortical activity of naturally sleeping toddlers with autism, but not in toddlers with language delay or typical development. Toddlers with autism exhibited significantly weaker interhemispheric synchronization (i.e., weak "functional connectivity" across the two hemispheres) in putative language areas. The strength of synchronization was positively correlated with verbal ability and negatively correlated with autism severity, and it enabled identification of the majority of autistic toddlers (72%) with high accuracy (84%). Disrupted cortical synchronization, therefore, appears to be a notable characteristic of autism neurophysiology that is evident at very early stages of autism development.
| S-EPMC3119852 | biostudies-literature
Project description:(1) Background: The aim of this study was to assess the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the use and outcomes of cardiac procedures among people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in Spain. (2) Methods: We used national hospital discharge data to select patients admitted to hospital with a diagnosis of COPD from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2020. (3) Results: The number of COPD patients hospitalized in 2019 who underwent a cardiac procedure was 4483, 16.2% higher than in 2020 (n = 3757). The length of hospital stay was significantly lower in 2020 than in 2019 (9.37 vs. 10.13 days; p = 0.004), and crude in-hospital mortality (IHM) was significantly higher (5.32% vs. 4.33%; p = 0.035). Multivariable logistic regression models to assess the differences in IHM from 2019 to 2020 showed Odds Ratio (OR) values over 1, suggesting a higher risk of dying in 2020 compared to in 2019. However, the ORs were only statistically significant for "any cardiac procedure" (1.18, 95% CI 1.03-1.47). The Charlson comorbidity index increased IHM for each of the procedures analyzed. The probability of IHM was higher for women and older patients who underwent coronary artery bypass graft or open valve replacement procedures. Suffering a COVID-19 infection was associated with significantly higher mortality after cardiac procedures. (4) Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic limited the access to healthcare for patients with COPD.
| S-EPMC9267656 | biostudies-literature