Utilizing Telemedicine for Group Visit Provider Encounters: A Feasibility and Acceptability Study

Area of Science:

• Digital Health
• Healthcare Management
• Clinical Informatics

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted telemedicine's value, particularly for enhancing group visit scalability.
• Limited data exists on telemedicine's application in group visit settings.
• Telemedicine offers potential for sustainable healthcare delivery models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility and patient acceptability of provider encounters via telemedicine within group visits.
• To compare clinical outcomes and attendance between in-person and telemedicine group visits.

Main Methods:

• A 6-month diabetes group visit program compared in-person (months 1-3) with telemedicine (months 4-6) encounters.
• Participants completed the Telehealth Usability Questionnaire (TUQ) to evaluate telemedicine experience.
• Clinical outcomes (HbA1c, blood pressure, BMI) and attendance rates were compared between the two modalities.

Main Results:

• Participants rated telemedicine highly for usefulness (4.9/5.0), ease of use (4.4/5.0), and satisfaction (4.4/5.0).
• No significant differences were observed in HbA1c, blood pressure, BMI, or attendance rates between in-person and telemedicine groups.
• Telemedicine group visits demonstrated comparable clinical effectiveness and patient engagement.

Conclusions:

• Provider telemedicine encounters in group visits are a feasible and acceptable care delivery model.
• This modality shows promise for overcoming provider limitations and expanding access to group-based healthcare.
• Further research with larger studies is recommended to validate these findings.