The appropriate extent of digitalisation: understanding telemedicine and virtual care

Abstract

Digital client communications are more than just video consultations; instead, much like in-practice experiences, they should be collaborative and involve all members of the veterinary team.

Seeing the benefits, but not taking advantage of them: Dog and cat owners’ beliefs about veterinary telemedicine

“…The questionnaire content was developed based on a transnational questionnaire study revealing veterinarians' attitudes towards a variety of aspects of modern small animal practice. [28][29][30][31] In relation to specific questions that address the use of telemedicine, a literature review was conducted 2,[7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14]19,20 and served as the main basis for the development of items. Detailed information about the development of the survey in the three different languages and stages of pre-testing can be found in Supporting Information S3.…”

“…The possibility of this has gained increasing attention in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. 3,[5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] From a client perspective, telemedicine offers various benefits, including avoiding transporting the rely on owners' descriptions because they cannot physically examine the patient, which may increase the risk of mistakes in diagnosis and subsequent patient care. [19][20][21] With this in mind, veterinary organisations emphasise that telemedicine can only be provided in an appropriate way if a veterinarian-clientpatient relationship has already been established.…”

“…Telemedicine can be offered in a variety of formats, such as telephone, video call or web streaming, 3,4 allowing clients to have a consultation with a veterinarian without having to bring the animal to the clinic. The possibility of this has gained increasing attention in the wake of the COVID‐19 pandemic 3,5–14 …”