Telemedicine has garnered considerably more attention during the COVID-19 pandemic than in any time previously. However, before the beginning of the pandemic, many individuals had not accessed care in this manner. The purpose of this study was to understand the central reasons that individuals had not used telemedicine before the pandemic. Therefore, we conducted a convenience sample survey in March-April 2020, and 539 participants living in the United States answered questions about exploring their reasons for not having used telemedicine. Descriptive statistics and correlations were conducted to analyze the data. Two themes emerged from these data, including the importance of the patient-provider relationship and that access to technology was not the issue for this particular population. Although technology was not a barrier, many, specifically older participants, had concerns over privacy and security. As the world gains some control over the COVID-19 pandemic and medical appointments begin to return to a new normal, the implication for the continued use of telemedicine is still important to address as this will become a standard of care.

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OBJECTIVE To characterize how class rank and other criteria are used to evaluate applicants for veterinary internship and residency positions. SAMPLE Program directors for 572 internship and residency programs. PROCEDURES A survey was sent to program directors asking them to score the importance of 7 items (cover letter, letters of reference, curriculum vitae, veterinary class rank, grade point average, grades for classes specifically related to the internship or residency specialty area, and interview) they could use in evaluating applicants for an internship or residency and to rank those 7 items, along with an open item asking participants to list other criteria they used, from most to least important. RESULTS Responses were obtained for 195 internship and 222 residency programs. For both internship programs and residency programs, mean importance scores assigned to the 7 items resulted in the same ordering from most to least important, with letters of reference, interview, curriculum vitae, and cover letter most important. Rankings of the importance of the 7 items, along with an “other” item, were similar for internship and residency programs; the most important item was a candidate's letters of reference, followed by the interview, cover letter, and curriculum vitae. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Results suggested that although most veterinary internship and residency programs consider class rank and overall grade point average when evaluating applicants, these 2 items were not the most important. For both internship and residency programs, the most important items were an applicant's letters of reference, followed by the interview, cover letter, and curriculum vitae.

Purpose: In this paper, we explore how health technology use impacts informal caregivers’ health and how sociodemographic factors are related, using the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS). Methods: Data for this study were obtained from the National Cancer Institutes’ Health Information and National Trends Survey (HINTS 5, Cycle 2, 2018). Participants for the current study were chosen based on their response to one question related to their caregiving status. The sample size was 483 respondents. Variables of interest included caregiver relationship type, general technology use, portal use, and overall health status. Results: The results indicate that there was not a significant difference of caregiving role on portal usage, [F(5,99) = .975, p = .44, η2 = .049], and technology use [F(7, 462)=2.625, p=.01]. This demonstrates that those caregiving for a child are more likely to use technology for health related issues. There was not a significant effect of portal use on caregiver health. However, there was a significant effect of technology use on overall health (t = 2.074, p=.04). There was also a significant effect of demographics on general technology use [F(7, 434)= 14.858, p < .001]. Demonstrating as education and income increases, technology use also increases, and as age increases technology use decreases. Conclusion: This study affirmed that demographic inequalities can negatively impact technology and portal use, which could reduce the burden on caregivers. Therefore, it is important to work to engage cancer patients and their caregivers with technological support and resources.

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