Evaluation of an Intrahospital Telemedicine Program for Patients Admitted With COVID-19: Mixed Methods Study

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Management
• Infectious Disease Control
• Digital Health

Background:

• Rising COVID-19 cases strained healthcare systems, necessitating capacity increases and resource conservation.
• Personal protective equipment (PPE) conservation and minimizing healthcare-associated infections (nosocomial spread) are critical challenges.
• Telemedicine offers potential solutions for inpatient care but requires thorough evaluation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate an intrahospital telemedicine program (virtual care) for COVID-19 patients.
• To assess the impact of virtual care on healthcare worker exposure risk.
• To analyze the effect of virtual care on patient-provider communication.

Main Methods:

• A natural experiment design was employed to study virtual care adoption in COVID-19 inpatients.
• Data collected included patient characteristics, PPE usage rates, and virtual care utilization.
• Patient and clinician satisfaction surveys assessed communication, treatment, and exposure risk domains.

Main Results:

• Virtual care was used by 43 out of 137 COVID-19 inpatients.
• Virtual care use correlated with significant reductions in PPE consumption and physical examinations.
• Surveys indicated high satisfaction and perceived communication improvements, alongside noted usability and assessment limitations.

Conclusions:

• This pilot study demonstrated that inpatient virtual care can reduce PPE use and exposure risk.
• Patient and provider satisfaction with virtual care was generally high.
• Further research is needed to address identified limitations in virtual care implementation.