Trends and Disparities in the Use of Telehealth Among Injured Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

Objective: To describe telehealth trends within a population-based workers' compensation system during the COVID-19 pandemic, and to assess telehealth utilization by sociodemographic characteristics. Methods: This cross-sectional study used Washington State workers' compensation claims and medical billing data from January 2019 to October 2020. Results: Telehealth use averaged 1.2% of medical bills pre-pandemic, peaked in April 2020 at 8.8%, and leveled off to around 3.6% from July to October 2020. Telehealth utilization differed significantly by age, sex, number of dependents, injury, industry, and receipt of interpreter services. Workers residing in counties with higher population, lower poverty rates, and greater Internet access had higher telehealth usage. Conclusions: There were dramatic shifts in telehealth; usage differed by sociodemographic characteristics. Further studies evaluating disparities in tele-health access among injured workers are needed.

Development and maturation of the occupational health services research field in the United States over the past 25 years: Challenges and opportunities for the future

“…[59][60][61][62][63][64][65] There is burgeoning interest in topics related to both telehealth and telework, for which the COVID-19 pandemic provided an important impetus. 66,67 OHSR is useful for addressing topics related to burnout, work/life balance, and work-related stress, anxiety, and depression, [68][69][70] and can be used to evaluate individual and structural interventions to address these, including work redesign, which is high on the hierarchy of controls. 59,71,72 The scope of OHSR also includes economic and cost-effectiveness research and evaluation of a wide variety of occupational health and safety policies and interventions;…”

“…More recently, research topics such as precarious work, work arrangements, work organization, and employment quality have been incorporated into the broadening field of OHSR as important social determinants of worker health and well‐being 59–65 . There is burgeoning interest in topics related to both telehealth and telework, for which the COVID‐19 pandemic provided an important impetus 66,67 . OHSR is useful for addressing topics related to burnout, work/life balance, and work‐related stress, anxiety, and depression, 68–70 and can be used to evaluate individual and structural interventions to address these, including work redesign, which is high on the hierarchy of controls 59,71,72 .…”

Telehealth Utilization in Trauma Care: The Effects on Emergency Department Length of Stay and Associated Outcomes

“…Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, telehealth utilization has skyrocketed from treating 13,000 Medicare beneficiaries before the public health emergency to nearly 1.7 million Medicare beneficiaries following the pandemic. 1 Such findings, spurred by a mandate to both reduce transmission rates and expand coverage to a variety of telehealth services, have prompted a medical renaissance in the standard treatment of care. Patient observation, treatment, and management can now be provided through a live audio-visual interface, bridging the geographical barrier between physicians and patients.…”