Telemedicine and neurosurgery: experience of a regional unit based in                South Africa

Jithoo, Rondhir; Govender, Pooveshni; Corr, Peter; Nathoo, Narendra

doi:10.1258/135763303321327894

Cited by 28 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…58 Therefore, teleoncology programs in lower-MICs (e.g., Jordan 9,16 ) or upper-MICs (e.g., South Africa 65 ) cannot realistically be used as models for programs in LICs (e.g., Yemen or Nigeria). Even within the MIC group, a lower-MIC (per capita income, US$936) is not comparable to an upper-MIC (per capita income, $11,456).…”

Section: Guidelines For Planning Teleoncology Programs Linking Institmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teleoncology: current and future applications for improving cancer care globally

Hazin

Qaddoumi

2010

The Lancet Oncology

143

123

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Access to quality cancer care is often unavailable not only in low- and middle-income countries but also in rural or remote areas of high-income countries. Teleoncology (oncology applications of medical telecommunications, including pathology, radiology, and other related disciplines) has the potential to enhance both access to and the quality of clinical cancer care as well as education and training. Its implementation in the developing world requires an approach tailored to priorities, resources, and needs. We believe that teleoncology can best achieve its proposed goals through programmatic, consistent, and long-term application. Here we review teleoncology initiatives that have the potential to decrease cancer care inequality between resource-poor and resource-rich institutions and offer guidelines for the development of teleoncology programs in low- and middle-income countries.

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Section: Guidelines For Planning Teleoncology Programs Linking Institmentioning

confidence: 99%

Teleoncology: current and future applications for improving cancer care globally

Hazin

Qaddoumi

2010

The Lancet Oncology

143

123

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“…Lack of reimbursement, inferiority of remote neurological exam, patient confidentiality concerns, the importance of in-person presence to establish the physician–patient bond, lack of technology, and acuity of disease processes treated are all reasons why the field of neurosurgery has been slow to adopt telemedicine. 2 Telemedicine has had modest utilization in resource-poor countries 3 , 4 and rural areas without access to neurosurgical services. 5 However, with the advent of the COVID-19 pandemic, the urgent need to protect healthcare workers and patients from viral infection, 6 , 7 as well as relaxation of regulatory barriers and facilitation of reimbursement in the United States, has stimulated new interest in telemedicine in neurosurgery.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Telemedicine in Neurosurgery: Lessons Learned from a Systematic Review of the Literature for the COVID-19 Era and Beyond

Eichberg

Basil

et al. 2020

Neurosurg.

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BACKGROUND Evolving requirements for patient and physician safety and rapid regulatory changes have stimulated interest in neurosurgical telemedicine in the COVID-19 era. OBJECTIVE To conduct a systematic literature review investigating treatment of neurosurgical patients via telemedicine, and to evaluate barriers and challenges. Additionally, we review recent regulatory changes that affect telemedicine in neurosurgery, and our institution's initial experience. METHODS A systematic review was performed including all studies investigating success regarding treatment of neurosurgical patients via telemedicine. We reviewed our department's outpatient clinic billing records after telemedicine was implemented from 3/23/2020 to 4/6/2020 and reviewed modifier 95 inclusion to determine the number of face-to-face and telemedicine visits, as well as breakdown of weekly telemedicine clinic visits by subspecialty. RESULTS A total of 52 studies (25 prospective and 27 retrospective) with 45 801 patients were analyzed. A total of 13 studies were conducted in the United States and 39 in foreign countries. Patient management was successful via telemedicine in 99.6% of cases. Telemedicine visits failed in 162 cases, 81.5% of which were due to technology failure, and 18.5% of which were due to patients requiring further face-to-face evaluation or treatment. A total of 16 studies compared telemedicine encounters to alternative patient encounter mediums; telemedicine was equivalent or superior in 15 studies. From 3/23/2020 to 4/6/2020, our department had 122 telemedicine visits (65.9%) and 63 face-to-face visits (34.1%). About 94.3% of telemedicine visits were billed using face-to-face procedural codes. CONCLUSION Neurosurgical telemedicine encounters appear promising in resource-scarce times, such as during global pandemics.

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“…Telemedicine has been successfully deployed in dermatology (19–25), ophthalmology (26,27), HIV prevention and care (28), clinical psychology and psychiatry (29,30), neurosurgery (31), radiology (32–35), and non-commuicable diseases including hypertension (36–38). Overall, the most successful telemedicine endeavors in SSA have relied on international collaborative efforts between centers in Africa and counterparts in North America or Europe.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Tele-neurology in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic review of the literature

Adamu

Awuah

Ovbiagele

2017

Journal of the Neurological Sciences

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Background The rapid advancement in telecommunications on the African continent has opened up avenues for improving medical care to underserved populations. Although the greatest burden of neurological disorders is borne by Low-and-Middle Income Countries (LMICs) including sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), there is a profound paucity of neurologists to serve the population. Telemedicine presents a promising avenue for effective mobilization and utilization of the few neurologists in Africa. Objective To systematically review the published literature on the use of telemedicine for improved care and outcomes for patients with neurological disorders in SSA. Methods We searched PubMed and Cochrane library from January 1, 1980 to April 30, 2017 using the following keywords: “Telemedicine neurology Africa”, “Teleneurology Africa”, “Telestroke Africa”, “Telerehabilitation Africa”, “Telemedicine for epilepsy”, Telemedicine for Parkinson’s disease Africa”, “Telemedicine for dementia Africa”, “Telehealth neurology Africa”. Our inclusion criteria were randomized controlled trials, or case series that reported the utilization of telemedicine for care/education of individuals with neurological disorders in Sub-Saharan Africa. Results This search yielded 6 abstracts. By consensus between two investigators, 1 publication met the criteria for inclusion and further review. The one study identified utilized telemedicine for the purpose of improving education/knowledge of 16 doctors and 17 allied health professionals in Parkinson’s disease (PD) in Cameroon. The study noted feasibility and satisfaction of participants with telemedicine as well as improved knowledge base of participants after the educational course but noted access to healthcare by patients did not change. No studies have evaluated the use of telemedicine for care of patients with neurological disorders. Conclusion The indication is that teleneurology may be feasible in SSA and studies are needed to assess feasibility, acceptability, efficacy, cost-effectiveness of this promising discipline of neurology in these resource-limited settings. We propose the setting up of trans-continental, inter-regional, intra-regional, and national networks of neurologists to utilize teleneurology platforms to improve the reach of neurology care in SSA.

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Telemedicine and neurosurgery: experience of a regional unit based in South Africa

Cited by 28 publications

References 5 publications

Teleoncology: current and future applications for improving cancer care globally

Teleoncology: current and future applications for improving cancer care globally

Telemedicine in Neurosurgery: Lessons Learned from a Systematic Review of the Literature for the COVID-19 Era and Beyond

Tele-neurology in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic review of the literature

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