Patient satisfaction with use of telepsychiatry and perception of mental stigma in psychiatric clinic

Abstract

Patient satisfaction is a crucial and frequently used parameter for assessing the standard of medical service. The COVID-19 epidemic forces the health systems to quickly adapt and find ways to deliver their customary offline services using online resources. Telepsychiatry enables psychiatrists to care for more patients in the far places. Where both the psychiatrists and their patients were able to connect, run through psycho diagnostics, and even recommend (pharmacology and psychotherapy) treatment. Aim: We aimed to assess patient level of satisfaction with use of telepsychiatry and their felt stigma in psychiatric clinic. Design: The descriptive correlational design was used. Setting: carried out at private health care center and private clinic that provide care through telepsychiatry using Chezlong, and Nabd Tech application. Tools: The study data was collected by using the following two tools: Tool I: Standardized Stigma Scale, Tool II: Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire Short Form (PSQ-18). Result: The main results revealed that more than half of the individuals that were investigated, were satisfied with tele psychiatry, most of them had great stigma level, also, there was not a statistically significant correlation between stigma and satisfaction with tele psychiatry. Conclusion: the majority of the studied patients were satisfied with the accessibility of using telepsychiatry and there was no statistically significant correlation between patients' satisfaction with using tele psychiatry and their perception of mental stigma. Recommendations: we offered recommendations for health IT policy makers, developers, and researchers to sustain the continuity of telehealth activities beyond the COVID-19 pandemic and enable the wide adoption and use of telehealth services.