A Retrospective Assessment of the Continuous Health Care Provided to COVID-19 Patients Consulted Via Videoconference

Abstract

Objective: Telemedicine has been defined as a valuable tool in delivering care for COVID-19 patients. However, clinicians and policymakers should be convinced that traditional and new technological methods of clinical management may be equally effective. The purpose of this study was to generate some initial recommendations based on the clinical utility of videoconference consultation in forward triage and follow-up for COVID-19 patients. Material and Methods: This retrospective cross-sectional study evaluated the medical records of 100 COVID-19 patients consulted using a videoconference program (Skype), from September 1, 2020, to February 3, 2021. The data were analyzed on demographic characteristics, disease history, the need for physical examination after videoconference consultation, pre-diagnostics and diagnostics, treatment decisions, number of videoconference consultation sessions in follow-up, duration of sessions, and final outcome. Results: The male COVID-19 patients constituted 54% of the total sample. The median age was 51 (42-61) years. The median duration of the initial videoconference consultation session was 16 (12-21) minutes. Following the initial videoconference consultation session, 14 patients required follow-up with all face-to-face visits; the remaining patients were primarily followed with videoconference consultation sessions. For 25 patients, it was sufficient to provide only videoconference consultation sessions; they were not required to be in the hospital for physical examination or any subsequent investigation at all. A total of 14 patients were hospitalized. There was no statistically significant difference between the high-risk group and the other patients according to the components of the disease management process via videoconference consultation. Conclusion: Videoconference consultation enables a holistic assessment regardless of the patient's characteristics and allows for more time to be spent on each patient, particularly during the pandemic period without risk of contagion. It can be used as a forward triage and follow-up tool to identify patients in need of emergency hospitalization and continuous health care.

Telehealth Intervention: A Proposal for a Telemedicine Manual to Ascertain the Civil Disability Status in Italy

“…The proposed scenario can be applied to different telematic platforms that are commonly used and easily available. Specifically, the software recommended in the implementation phase within the illustrated document is Skype™ [ 13 ], as it is free and widely accessible throughout the country. Numerous studies and international scientific experiences have demonstrated the validity of this platform in healthcare settings, having been applied for various purposes with encouraging results: virtual rehabilitation interventions for language disorders, remote synchronous consultations in Ophthalmic Telesurgery, health status monitoring following different kinds of interventions, psychotherapy, virtual consultations in Plastic Surgery, as well as in several clinical settings [ 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 ].…”

Smoking Cessation Support via Video Counseling (e-Cessation): A Promising Field for Telemedicine Implementation

“…Synchronized randomization into the control and telemedicine groups was not feasible due to the necessity of implementing telemedicine as video counseling during the pandemic, when the traditional method had to be interrupted, as was the case in similar facilities. If telemedicine had not been voluntarily implemented in the pulmonary outpatient clinic, 4 it would not have been possible to continue smoking cessation support. Under these circumstances, the comparison can be considered acceptable, given that the traditional control group provided data from the smoking cessation support given during the prepandemic period by the same team and structured process.…”

“…Only patients who absolutely needed an in-person visit for either physical examination, testing, or prescription were invited to the hospital. 4 After gaining significant experience employing telemedicine for remote management of pulmonary diseases, the pulmonologist noticed the absence of the routine smoking cessation support provided in the prepandemic period. Considering the lower need for urgent physical examinations and laboratory tests, as well as the availability of relevant drugs free of charge from units designated by the Ministry of Health (MoH), the suitability of using telemedicine techniques for smoking cessation support was deemed reasonable.…”

“…Recently, a retrospective assessment of telemedicine via video conferences for COVID-19 patients has demonstrated its potential in forward triage, follow-up visits, and providing continuous remote healthcare support for these patients. 4 However, the medical interventions of telemedicine, whether they are suitable or not, await investigation through clinical studies. Smoking cessation support might be one such area due to its non-urgent nature, as it does not require immediate physical or radiological examinations.…”