This appeared last week:
Patients unlikely to stop telehealth after the pandemic: Research
A new GP-led study has labelled telehealth a game-changer, with one author saying ‘we can’t turn back the clock’.
07 Jan 2021
The research, led by
Macquarie University and involving a number of different Primary Health
Networks (PHNs) in New South Wales and Victoria, shows a dramatic uptake in the
use of phone consultations in particular since the creation of new Medicare Benefits
Schedule (MBS) item numbers in March last year.
In the Victorian PHNs captured by the study, GP telephone consultations
increased from zero per week in 2019 to a median of 95,357 per week in 2020,
while video consultations increased from 38 to 2540. Meanwhile, face-to-face
consultations dropped from 202,624 per week to 140,485.
It was a similar story in NSW, where phone consultations increased from none in
2019 to a median of 42,850 per week, alongside an uptick in video consultations
from four per week to 805.
The researchers, led by Professor Andrew Georgiou from Macquarie University’s
Centre for Health Systems and Safety Research, found overall that people
consulted GPs more often from January to September 2020 than they did in the
same period in 2019, despite the restrictions of the COVID-19 pandemic.
‘We think much of that is because people could access telehealth,’ Professor
Georgiou said.
The study covered nearly 30% of the Australian population, and included urban
and rural/remote regions from close to 800 general practices (454 from Victoria
and 346 from NSW).
Dr Chris Pearce, a GP in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs, says telehealth has been
an ‘absolute game-changer’ for general practice.
‘We have to acknowledge, we can’t turn the clock back – it’s now an important
part of how we work,’ he said.
‘Here’s a typical example: I might see a patient and order a blood test, and a
year ago I’d say, “Come back and see me and we’ll go through the results”. They
take the morning off work, and sit in my waiting room for however long it
takes.
‘Now, we have a 10-minute phone call, it’s more convenient for them [and] it’s
more convenient for me – I can do some of my work from home.’
Dr Pearce also said telehealth can be used by doctors to more effectively
coordinate patients’ care, such as arranging referrals and prescribing, while
simultaneously identifying patients who need to be seen in person. This was
especially important during Victoria’s second lockdown, where many of Dr
Pearce’s elderly patients did not want to risk in-person for medical appointments.
More here:
https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/professional/patients-unlikely-to-stop-telehealth-after-the-pan
There is also coverage here:
1 in 3 GP visits now via telehealth: report
Patients have embraced their new way of consulting a GP, Sydney authors say
7th January 2021
One in three GP consultations in 2020 were carried out over the phone or video rather than face-to-face, an analysis shows.
Patients embraced telehealth so enthusiastically that total medical services went up in 2020 despite the pandemic, researchers from Macquarie University in Sydney say.
Their snapshot reveals telehealth consultations for GP services shot up from zero in 2019 to more than 138,000 per week between January and September 2020.
The authors, led by Professor Andrew Georgiou, say their findings underscore the popularity of telehealth.
During the height of Victoria’s second COVID-19 wave in August, phone consultations exceeded face-to-face consultations, they wrote.
Their report used MBS data collected from 800 practices across five PHNs in NSW and Victoria by ehealth company Outcome Health. The data covered about one third of Australia’s population.
……
More information: COVID-19 General Practice Snapshot report
More here:
https://www.ausdoc.com.au/news/1-3-gp-visits-now-telehealth-report
There is really little to add. I do hope the health outcome studies are underway to confirm the care delivered is safe and effective!
David.
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