Primary Care Professionals’ Acceptance of Medical Record-Based, Store and Forward Provider-to-Provider Telemedicine in Catalonia: Results of a Web-Based Survey

Abstract

While telemedicine services enjoy a high acceptance among the public, evidence regarding clinician’s acceptance, a key factor for sustainable telemedicine services, is mixed. However, telemedicine is generally better accepted by both patients and professionals who live in rural areas, as it can save them significant time. The objective of this study is to assess the acceptance of medical record-based, store and forward provider-to-provider telemedicine among primary care professionals and to describe the factors which may determine their future use. This is an observational cross-sectional study using the Catalan version of the Health Optimum questionnaire; a technology acceptance model-based validated survey comprised of eight short questions. The online, voluntary response poll was sent to all 661 primary care professionals in 17 primary care teams that had potentially used the telemedicine services of the main primary care provider in Catalonia, in the Central Catalan Region. The majority of respondents rated the quality of telemedicine consultations as “Excellent” or “Good” (83%). However, nearly 60% stated that they sometimes had technical, organizational or other difficulties, which might affect the quality of care delivered. These negatively predicted their declared future use (p = 0.001). The quality of telemedicine services is perceived as good overall for all the parameters studied, especially among nurses. It is important that policymakers examine and provide solutions for the technical and organizational difficulties detected (e.g., by providing training), in order to ensure the use of these services in the future.

Telemedicine and COVID-19 Pandemic: Valuable Lessons for Future Implementations

“…Although currently, Spain has no nationwide regulation enabling telemedicine services [33], [34], the use of telemedicine services has increased during the pandemic. For example, in the Spanish region of Catalonia, authorities in public health have deployed a follow-up system in primary care that uses telephone calls to monitor patients' symptoms and, if they worsen, accommodate them to revisit the health center [35].…”

La edad como factor determinante en la atención por teleconsulta

“…Aunque no mostraron gran entusiasmo, los resultados fueron buenos, especialmente entre los profesionales de enfermería. Los profesionales de la salud también informaron que la calidad técnica es buena, aunque a menudo experimentaron problemas técnicos y organizativos 48 .…”

“…También es necesario que los responsables de la formulación de políticas aborden las dificultades técnicas y organizativas que han encontrado los profesionales (por ejemplo, brindando capacitación), si quieren garantizar el uso de estos servicios en el futuro 48 . En la Tabla 5 se especifican los artículos seleccionados en esta categoría, con su título, año y tipo de estudio.…”

Using Artificial Intelligence as a Diagnostic Decision Support Tool in Skin Disease: Protocol for an Observational Prospective Cohort Study

“…Even though this technique showed merits in triage quality, it presented low accuracy in inflammatory problems [13]. Teledermatology has the potential to increase access by facilitating referrals and offering convenience and decreased waiting times, as well as providing diagnostic support and improved satisfaction for both patients and providers [8,[14][15][16][17].…”