Virtual to Vital: Effectiveness of Telemedicine in Georgia

Telemedicine has emerged in the digital era, transforming healthcare delivery. Improving the easy accessibility, efficiency, and patient-centered care to expand healthcare access, especially for those with minimal or no access to healthcare. The issues faced in the traditional healthcare system, such as resource limitations and long waiting times, are addressed by telemedicine. This study aims to assess the effectiveness of telemedicine in Georgia using a survey-based approach employing well-established scales, such as telehealth usability and patient satisfaction questionnaires.

A cross-sectional survey approach was used in this study to inspect telemedicine effectiveness in Georgia, focusing on patient satisfaction, compliance, physician satisfaction, and workflow efficiency. Participants comprised patients aged 18+ and healthcare providers with at least six months of telemedicine experience; those below these baselines were excluded, resulting in a sample of 80. Surveys were adapted from validated scales - PSQ-18 for patients (Cronbach's alpha: 0.83) and the Telehealth Usability Questionnaire (TUQ) for physicians (Cronbach's alpha: 0.5) - and distributed electronically at Raymann Hospital and via telemedicine platforms like REDMED. A 10-point Likert scale was used to assess feedback, with higher scores indicating greater satisfaction, compliance, or workflow efficiency. GraphPad Prism V.10 (La Jolla, CA, USA) was used for statistical analysis, including independent-samples t-tests to compare in-person and online consultations and Pearson correlation to assess the relationship between telemedicine use and satisfaction levels.

This study revealed a numerical trend toward higher patient satisfaction with on-site consultations across both age groups, particularly among those aged 18-40, although the difference among patients aged >41 years was minimal; however, these differences were not statistically significant. Compliance followed a similar trend, with higher scores for on-site consultation; however, the differences were not statistically significant. For physicians, on-site practice was numerically associated with higher satisfaction, and while telemedicine was numerically associated with higher workflow efficiency, regardless of years of experience; however, these differences were not statistically significant. Furthermore, a strong positive correlation was observed between satisfaction and the likelihood of continuing telemedicine services for both patients (r = 0.649, p < 0.0001) and doctors (r = 0.72, p < 0.0001).

This study identified numerical trends suggesting notable strengths of telemedicine, including higher perceived physician work efficiency, as well as areas for improvement, and showed that older patients reported similar satisfaction levels across both consultation modes. It was observed that while on-site consultations were associated with greater patient satisfaction and compliance, telemedicine was numerically associated with higher physician workflow efficiency. A positive correlation was observed between satisfaction and sustained use of telemedicine, indicating that higher satisfaction was associated with a greater likelihood of future use. As an exploratory study, these findings should be interpreted cautiously and serve as a basis for future research. These findings suggest telemedicine may offer potential advantages worth exploring in larger studies.