Pain Management and Telemedicine: A Look at the COVID Experience and Beyond

Abstract

COVID-19 caused a drastic change in clinical medicine around the globe. In the United States, telemedicine was rapidly adopted on a wide scale to minimize direct patient interaction and to reduce the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Telemedicine also went hand in hand with the rapid movement of working remotely. This has provided several challenges to chronic pain management clinics along with other subspecialties. Telemedicine has also opened opportunities for providing valuable care for patients with significant barriers to healthcare professionals. Given the benefits and downfalls of telemedicine, it is ultimately up to the provider who has an established patient-physician relationship and best understands the patient’s limitations and healthcare needs who can best determine which patient population telemedicine is appropriate for and how frequently it can be utilized for each individual patient.

Cancer Patients with Chronic Pain and Their Caregivers during COVID-19: A Descriptive Study

“…In this study, the patients and informal caregivers identify telehealth in the form of frequent phone calls and videoconference, as an important tool that they would have liked to have more often during the confinement period. The remote interactions were adopted worldwide during the pandemic and shifted the paradigm for chronic pain care [ 38 , 39 ]. Telemedicine brings new opportunities for providing valuable care for patients with significant barriers to access healthcare professionals [ 39 ].…”

“…The remote interactions were adopted worldwide during the pandemic and shifted the paradigm for chronic pain care [ 38 , 39 ]. Telemedicine brings new opportunities for providing valuable care for patients with significant barriers to access healthcare professionals [ 39 ]. Telemedicine may provide equitable, accessible, and affordable healthcare to patients and caregivers [ 40 ] and is an essential tool that should be improved and embedded, even in regular practice.…”

Implementing Telemedicine During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Disparities in Utilization in an Urban Pain Medicine Practice

“… 11 However, telemedicine also presents many limitations, and studies have suggested it might be tailored for selected patient categories. 16 , 25 One concern is the impact of Telemedicine on different populations with differences in healthcare access – one of the already known barriers to undertreated pain. Access to telemedicine generally relies on the patient’s ability to obtain and use technology - factors that are usually dictated by age, education, and socioeconomic status.…”