The report shows overwhelming support from doctors for virtual care
A new report from Doximity, a telemedicine platform for healthcare providers, shows that 83% of physician telemedicine users said they would prefer virtual care to remain a permanent part of their clinical practice.
The research also looked at the opinions of telehealth patients. Over the past year, 96% of those surveyed reported equivalent or superior overall medical care, while 78% indicated that telehealth visits improved their access to health care services.
Why does it matter?
To examine the evolving role of telemedicine, researchers examined how digital applications contributed to patient outcomes and physician workflows by analyzing how physician members across all specialties and practice areas used telemedicine tools throughout 2023.
While 84% highlighted the value of telemedicine in improving continuity of care for patients with chronic or complex conditions, physicians credited virtual care with reducing patient wait times and missed appointments and addressing social determinants of patients’ health.
Doctors of all age groups used telehealth, with those under 50 accounting for nearly three-quarters (74%) of Doximity’s telemedicine users last year, according to a report.
To supplement last year’s opinion data, researchers also conducted a survey of 1,171 physicians and 131 nurse practitioners who are telemedicine users in 10 specialties — cardiology, dermatology, endocrinology, gastroenterology, neurology, oncology, primary care, psychiatry, pulmonology, and rheumatology — in August. . .
“As physicians continue to integrate telemedicine into their practices, more than three-quarters (77%) of physician telemedicine users surveyed reported using it at least weekly and more than a third reported using it daily,” the new State of Telemedicine report 2024 he said.
Both doctors and patients told researchers that telemedicine has increased access to health care services and enhanced doctor-patient communication.
Of the patients surveyed for the study, 96% emphasized the role of telehealth as a complement to in-person care or, depending on the patient, as a substitute for it. A large majority of patients surveyed (82%) also said they believe telemedicine helps them stay informed about the care they receive.
The majority of physicians reported that telemedicine contributed to improved disease management and improved patient satisfaction, with 64% reporting that telemedicine helped improve patient outcomes in their practices.
Through virtual visits, doctors can maintain regular touchpoints with their patients, the report said, noting that the specialties most likely to use telehealth to manage ongoing care are endocrinology, urology, gastroenterology, rheumatology, and neurology. .
“The results of this study suggest that telemedicine and in-person care are allies, not competitors, in providing comprehensive, timely, patient-centered care,” Dr. Nate Gross, co-founder and chief strategy officer at Doximity, said in a statement. Tuesday.
The researchers concluded that looking to the future, most doctors and patients want to maintain access to telemedicine services, reinforcing previous evidence of this. A permanent role for telemedicine In health care.
The biggest trend
Two years ago, Doximity researchers found significant patient interest in virtual care post-pandemic, suggesting a permanent place for telehealth in post-pandemic life.
Digital innovation has pushed providers to reinvent themselves to achieve the Quadruple Aim – as provider experience has now been added to the Triple Aim equation, which is the title of healthcare delivery.
However, the need to democratize access to care adds health equity to the equation. That’s why telehealth advocates continue to implore Congress to expand the flexibility of virtual care in the pandemic era once and for all.
“Enhanced access to telehealth services is a lifeline for patients across the country, allowing patients to access vital healthcare services even when they have barriers to accessing in-person care, such as compromised immune systems, transportation challenges, and geographic distance.” And more.” Several organizations said in a letter to lawmakers dated Dec. 11.
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“While in-person care remains a cornerstone of health care delivery, telemedicine serves as a valuable complement to that care,” Goss said in a statement.
Andrea Fox is a senior editor at Healthcare IT News.
Email: afox@himss.org
Healthcare IT News is a HIMSS media publication.