Background: A 2017 survey of patient perspectives showed overall willingness and comfort to use telemedicine, but low actual use. Given recent growth and widespread exposure of patients to telemedicine, patient preferences are likely to have changed.
Objective: This study aimed to (1) identify demographic trends in patient preferences and experiences; (2) measure ease of use and satisfaction of telemedicine; and (3) measure changes in telemedicine use, willingness, and comfort since 2017.
Introduction: Telehealth utilization surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, offering expanded health care access. Audio-only visits emerged as a crucial tool for patients facing technology or connectivity barriers to still use telehealth. This qualitative study aims to better understand patient perceptions of audio-only versus video telehealth visits during the COVID-19 pandemic, and how patients perceive the role of each in their overall health care.
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August 2023
Background: With the removal of many barriers to direct-to-consumer telehealth during the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in a historic surge in the adoption of telehealth into ongoing practice, health systems must now identify the most efficient and effective way to sustain these visits. The Medical University of South Carolina Center for Telehealth developed a Telehealth Centralized Support team as part of a strategy to mature the support infrastructure for the continued large-scale use of outpatient virtual care. The team was deployed as the Center for Telehealth rolled out a new ambulatory telehealth software platform to monitor clinical activity, support patient registration and virtual rooming, and ensure successful visit completion.
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