Telemedicine After Upper Extremity Surgery: A Prospective Study of Program Implementation.

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Digital Health
• Patient Care Models

Background:

• Postoperative care for hand and upper extremity surgery often involves significant patient travel.
• Conventional in-clinic follow-up visits can be time-consuming and burdensome.
• Telemedicine offers a potential solution to improve access and efficiency in postoperative care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the implementation of a postoperative telemedicine program for hand and upper extremity surgery.
• To compare travel burden, visit time, and patient satisfaction between telemedicine and conventional in-clinic visits.

Main Methods:

• Prospective study including patients undergoing outpatient surgery.
• Inclusion based on hospital telemedicine guidelines.
• Exclusion criteria included nonabsorbable sutures, hospital admission, or need for custom orthosis.
• Data collected: demographics, patient-reported outcomes, technology usage, travel information, and patient satisfaction.

Main Results:

• 66% of eligible patients participated (57/87).
• 89% used cell phones, 88% of visits were from home.
• Telemedicine visits were significantly shorter (7 min vs. 38 min).
• Mean travel for in-clinic visits was 60 miles/85 minutes.
• 90% of patients preferred telemedicine for future visits.
• 4 clinical complications were identified during telemedicine visits.

Conclusions:

• Telemedicine effectively reduces travel burden and visit times for postoperative hand and upper extremity care.
• Patient satisfaction remains high with telemedicine, comparable to in-clinic visits.
• Early detection of surgical complications is not compromised by telemedicine.