Methodologies for assessing telemedicine: A systematic review of reviews

Ekeland, Anne Granstrøm; Bowes, Alison; Flottorp, Signe

doi:10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2011.10.009

Cited by 155 publications

(117 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…Current knowledge on the effects of telemedicine has been established through low-powered studies (33), and clinical telemedical trials of ulcers have mainly focused on healing as the primary outcome without consideration of other clinical outcomes, such as amputation and mortality. Because diabetic foot ulcers are associated with a high risk of amputation and 85% of patients with amputation initially present with a diabetic foot ulcer (34,35), data on this and other risks associated with diabetic ulcers should be collected when evaluating new interventions.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Telemedical and Standard Outpatient Monitoring of Diabetic Foot Ulcers

et al. 2015

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OBJECTIVEThe role of telemedical monitoring in diabetic foot ulcer care is still uncertain. Our aim was to compare telemedical and standard outpatient monitoring in the care of patients with diabetic foot ulcers in a randomized controlled trial. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODSOf the 736 screened individuals with diabetic foot ulcers, 401 met the eligibility criteria and were randomized between October 2010 and November 2014. The per-protocol telemedical monitoring consisted of two consultations in the patient's own home and one consultation at the outpatient clinic. Standard practice consisted of three outpatient clinic visits. The three-visit cycle was repeated until study end point. The study end points were defined as complete ulcer healing, amputation, or death. RESULTSOne hundred ninety-three individuals were randomized to telemedical monitoring and 181 to standard care. Demographics were similar in both groups. A causespecific Cox proportional hazards model showed no difference in individuals monitored through telemedicine regarding wound healing (hazard ratio 1.11 [95% CI 0.87, 1.42], P = 0.42) or amputation (0.87 [0.54, 1.42], P = 0.59). We found a higher mortality incidence in the telemedical monitoring group compared with the standard outpatient monitoring group (8.68 [6.93, 10.88], P = 0.0001). CONCLUSIONSThe findings of no significant difference regarding amputation and healing between telemedical and standard outpatient monitoring seem promising; however, for telemedical monitoring, a higher mortality throws into question the role of telemedicine in monitoring diabetic foot ulcers. Further studies are needed to investigate effects of telemedicine on mortality and other clinical outcomes and to identify patient subgroups that may have a poorer outcome through telemedical monitoring.Diabetes currently affects .387 million people worldwide, and this number is expected to rise to .592 million individuals worldwide by 2035 (1). In Denmark, 320,545 people suffer from diabetes, and it is estimated that a further 200,000 individuals are undiagnosed; a further 750,000 have impaired glucose tolerance (2). Approximately 7-15% of the population with diabetes will have one or several foot ulcers during a lifetime, and up to 70% of these ulcers will recur during a 5-year period (3). Diabetic foot ulcers lead to ;500 major amputations every year in

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Telemedical and Standard Outpatient Monitoring of Diabetic Foot Ulcers

et al. 2015

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“…teledermatology). There are many proof-of-concept studies [73][74][75][76][77] and examples of up-and-running services, largely in remote regions (e.g. in rural Wales, UK 78 ).…”

Section: Telemedicinementioning

confidence: 99%

Advantages and limitations of virtual online consultations in a NHS acute trust: the VOCAL mixed-methods study

Shaw

Wherton

Vijayaraghavan

et al. 2018

Health Serv Deliv Res

148

186

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Health Services and Delivery ResearchISSN 2050-4349 (Print) ISSN 2050-4357 (Online) This journal is a member of and subscribes to the principles of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) (www.publicationethics.org/).Editorial contact: journals.library@nihr.ac.ukThe full HS&DR archive is freely available to view online at www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk/hsdr. Print-on-demand copies can be purchased from the report pages of the NIHR Journals Library website: www.journalslibrary.nihr.ac.uk Criteria for inclusion in the Health Services and Delivery Research journalReports are published in Health Services and Delivery Research (HS&DR) if (1) they have resulted from work for the HS&DR programme or programmes which preceded the HS&DR programme, and (2) they are of a sufficiently high scientific quality as assessed by the reviewers and editors. HS&DR programmeThe Health Services and Delivery Research (HS&DR) programme, part of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), was established to fund a broad range of research. It combines the strengths and contributions of two previous NIHR research programmes: the Health Services Research (HSR) programme and the Service Delivery and Organisation (SDO) programme, which were merged in January 2012.The HS&DR programme aims to produce rigorous and relevant evidence on the quality, access and organisation of health services including costs and outcomes, as well as research on implementation. The programme will enhance the strategic focus on research that matters to the NHS and is keen to support ambitious evaluative research to improve health services.For more information about the HS&DR programme please visit the website: http://www.nets.nihr.ac.uk/programmes/hsdr This reportThe research reported in this issue of the journal was funded by the HS&DR programme or one of its preceding programmes as project number 13/59/26. The contractual start date was in March 2015. The final report began editorial review in July 2017 and was accepted for publication in November 2017. The authors have been wholly responsible for all data collection, analysis and interpretation, and for writing up their work. The HS&DR editors and production house have tried to ensure the accuracy of the authors' report and would like to thank the reviewers for their constructive comments on the final report document. However, they do not accept liability for damages or losses arising from material published in this report.This report presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR). The views and opinions expressed by authors in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the NHS, the NIHR, NETSCC, the HS&DR programme or the Department of Health and Social Care. If there are verbatim quotations included in this publication the views and opinions expressed by the interviewees are those of the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect those of the authors, those of the NHS, the NIHR, NETSCC, the HS&DR programme or the Depar...

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“…In comparative studies involving telemedicine, the use of randomized designs is preferable and, to date, underutilized; it may be appropriate under certain circumstances to randomize one or more of patients, physicians, or delivery sites. [55][56][57] CURRENT BARRIERS TO TELEMEDICINE The implementation of telemedicine requires an initial financial investment in equipment, software, and telecommunications. There are often ongoing costs associated with maintenance of technology and personnel costs associated with training and technical support.…”

Section: Research On Telemedicinementioning

confidence: 99%

The Use of Telemedicine to Address Access and Physician Workforce Shortages

Rimsza¹,

Hotaling²,

Keown³

et al. 2015

Pediatrics

188

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The use of telemedicine technologies by primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists, and pediatric surgical specialists (henceforth referred to as “pediatric physicians”) has the potential to transform the practice of pediatrics. The purpose of this policy statement is to describe the expected and potential impact that telemedicine will have on pediatric physicians’ efforts to improve access and physician workforce shortages. The policy statement also describes how the American Academy of Pediatrics can advocate for its members and their patients to best use telemedicine technologies to improve access to care, provide more patient- and family-centered care, increase efficiencies in practice, enhance the quality of care, and address projected shortages in the clinical workforce. As the use of telemedicine increases, it is likely to impact health care access, quality, and education and costs of care. Telemedicine technologies, applied to the medical home and its collaborating providers, have the potential to improve current models of care by increasing communication among clinicians, resulting in more efficient, higher quality, and less expensive care. Such a model can serve as a platform for providing more continuous care, linking primary and specialty care to support management of the needs of complex patients. In addition, telemedicine technologies can be used to efficiently provide pediatric physicians working in remote locations with ongoing medical education, increasing their ability to care for more complex patients in their community, reducing the burdens of travel on patients and families, and supporting the medical home. On the other hand, telemedicine technologies used for episodic care by nonmedical home providers have the potential to disrupt continuity of care and to create redundancy and imprudent use of health care resources. Fragmentation should be avoided, and telemedicine, like all primary and specialty services, should be coordinated through the medical home.

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Methodologies for assessing telemedicine: A systematic review of reviews

Cited by 155 publications

References 63 publications

A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Telemedical and Standard Outpatient Monitoring of Diabetic Foot Ulcers

A Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing Telemedical and Standard Outpatient Monitoring of Diabetic Foot Ulcers

Advantages and limitations of virtual online consultations in a NHS acute trust: the VOCAL mixed-methods study

The Use of Telemedicine to Address Access and Physician Workforce Shortages

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