Development of key performance indicators for a telemedicine setting in Egypt using an electronic modified Delphi...

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Medical Informatics
• Quality Improvement

Background:

• Performance measurement is vital for healthcare quality.
• Telemedicine quality studies are numerous, but specific indicator research is limited.
• Developing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) is essential for evaluating telemedicine.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and establish a comprehensive set of KPIs for assessing telemedicine performance.
• To identify measurable indicators across key domains of telemedicine services.

Main Methods:

• A consensus-based Delphi method was employed at Ain Shams Virtual Hospital (AVH).
• A review of scientific sources identified initial indicators, followed by expert rating and consensus-building.
• Three rounds of electronic modified Delphi technique were used, with agreement defined as 70%.

Main Results:

• Three criteria for indicator selection were established: clarity, feasibility, and importance.
• An initial list of 52 indicators was refined to 31 validated KPIs after two Delphi rounds.
• The selected KPIs cover operations, clinical services, and customer satisfaction, with substantial inter-rater agreement (Cohen's Kappa ~85%).

Conclusions:

• A robust set of 31 KPIs has been identified for telemedicine performance evaluation.
• These indicators address critical areas including access, utilization, system efficiency, and customer satisfaction.
• Future research should focus on piloting these KPIs in real-world telemedicine systems.