Telemedicine use by pediatric rheumatologists during the COVID-19 pandemic
Rajdeep Pooni1, Tova Ronis2, Tzielan Lee3
1Stanford Cildren's Health, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, USA. rpooni@stanford.edu.
Insights
Pediatric rheumatology providers found telemedicine exams reliable for musculoskeletal assessments but struggled to gather complete clinical information. Patient engagement and confidentiality concerns were also noted, with some providers experiencing increased burnout.
Area of Science:
- Rheumatology
- Telemedicine
- Pediatric Healthcare
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of telemedicine in pediatric rheumatology.
- Understanding provider experiences with telehealth is crucial for optimizing its use.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess pediatric rheumatology provider acceptability, clinical reliability, and appropriateness of telemedicine practices during the pandemic.
Main Methods:
- An electronic survey was distributed to 547 members of the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA).
- Survey responses were analyzed using descriptive statistics.
Main Results:
- A 40.8% response rate (223 providers) was achieved, with most respondents being attending physicians.
- Musculoskeletal exam components were deemed most reliable via telemedicine.
- 65.7% of providers felt unable to obtain sufficient information for a complete assessment.
- 35.8% reported increased burnout due to telemedicine, with noted disagreements on patient engagement and confidentiality.
Conclusions:
- Telemedicine offers reliable musculoskeletal assessments in pediatric rheumatology but limitations exist in achieving complete clinical evaluations.
- Further qualitative research is recommended to explore nuances of patient engagement and confidentiality in virtual visits.
Background:
To characterize various aspects of telemedicine use by pediatric rheumatology providers during the recent pandemic including provider acceptability of telehealth practices, clinical reliability, and clinical appropriateness.
Methods:
An electronic survey was generated and disseminated amongst the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) listserv (n = 547). Survey items were analyzed via descriptive statistics by question.
Results:
The survey response rate was 40.8% (n = 223) with the majority of respondents in an attending-level role. We observed that musculoskeletal components of the exam were rated as the most reliable components of a telemedicine exam and 86.5% of survey respondents reported engaging the patient or patient caregiver to help conduct the virtual exam. However, 65.7% of providers reported not being able to elicit the information needed from a telemedicine visit to make a complete clinical assessment. We also noted areas of disagreement regarding areas of patient engagement and confidentiality. We found that approximately one-third (35.8%) of those surveyed felt that their level of burnout was increased due to telemedicine.
Conclusion:
In general, providers found exam reliability (specifically around focused musculoskeletal elements) in telemedicine visits but overall felt that they were unable to generate the information needed to generate a complete clinical assessment. Additionally, there were suggestions that patient engagement and confidentiality varied during telemedicine visits when compared to in-person clinical visits. Further qualitative work is needed to fully explore telemedicine use in pediatric rheumatology.
More Related Videos
09:03Nasal Brushing Sampling and Processing Using Digital High Speed Ciliary Videomicroscopy – Adaptation for the COVID-19 Pandemic
Published on: November 7, 2020
05:56Implementation of Non-invasive Point of Care Transient Elastography for Evaluation of Liver Disease in Pediatric Populations with Cystic Fibrosis
Published on: August 29, 2025
Related Concept Videos
01:21Rheumatic Heart Disease III: Medical Management
01:26Pharmacokinetics in Pediatric Patients: Drug Excretion
01:20Rheumatic Heart Disease IV: Nursing Management
01:29Issues And Trends In Healthcare Delivery System
Cost Containment
Payment for healthcare services has historically promoted adoption of costly and often unnecessary or inefficient...
01:26Tonsillitis II: Management
01:22Rheumatic Heart Disease II: Clinical Manifestations and Diagnostic Studies