Associations With Virtual Visit Use Among Patients Receiving Radiation Therapy

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Health Services Research
• Digital Health

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of virtual visits in healthcare.
• Understanding patient characteristics associated with virtual visit utilization is crucial for equitable care delivery.

Purpose of the Study:

• To identify patient demographic and clinical factors associated with virtual versus in-person visits in radiation oncology during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of electronic health records from a National Cancer Institute-Designated Cancer Center.
• Comparison of patient characteristics (race, age, sex, marital status, language, insurance, tumor type) between pre-COVID-19 (in-person) and during-COVID-19 (in-person vs. virtual) encounters.
• Multivariable logistic regression to assess predictors of virtual visit use.

Main Results:

• During COVID-19, 21% of radiation oncology encounters were virtual. Virtual visit use was significantly lower among Black patients compared to White patients (OR, 0.75) and unmarried patients compared to married patients (OR, 0.76).
• Patients with head and neck, breast, gastrointestinal/abdominal, or hematologic malignancies were less likely to use virtual visits compared to those with genitourinary malignancies.
• No Spanish-speaking patients utilized virtual visits, and no differences were found in insurance status or sex associated with virtual visit use.

Conclusions:

• Significant disparities exist in virtual visit utilization among radiation oncology patients based on sociodemographic and clinical factors.
• Further investigation into social determinants and structural factors influencing differential virtual visit use and its impact on clinical outcomes is warranted.