Ezra J Margolin1, Luis A Pina Martina1, Caleb H Miles2, Sven Wenske1, James M McKiernan1, G Joel DeCastro1, Elias S Hyams1, Charles G Drake3, Emerson A Lim3, Mark N Stein3, Israel Deutsch4, Christopher B Anderson5. 1. Department of Urology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY. 2. Department of Biostatistics, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, New York, NY. 3. Division of Hematology and Oncology, Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY. 4. Department of Radiation Oncology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY. 5. Department of Urology, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY. Electronic address: cba2125@cumc.columbia.edu.
Abstract
PURPOSE: The rapid expansion of telemedicine has presented a challenge for the care of patients with genitourinary malignancies. We sought to assess patient and physician perspectives on the use of telemedicine for genitourinary cancer care. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cross-sectional study of patients who had telemedicine visits with urology, medical oncology, or radiation oncology for management of genitourinary malignancies from July-August 2020. Patients and physicians each received a questionnaire regarding the telemedicine experience. Responses were scored on a 5-point Likert scale. The primary outcomes of the study were patient and physician satisfaction. RESULTS: Of the 115 patients who enrolled, we received 96 patient responses and 46 physician responses. Overall, 77% of patients and 70% of physicians reported being "extremely satisfied" with the telemedicine encounter. Satisfaction was high among all components of the encounter including patient-physician communication, counseling, shared decision making, time spent, timeliness and efficiency, and convenience. Additionally, 78% of patients and 85% of physicians "strongly agreed" that they were able to discuss sensitive topics about cancer care as well as they could at an in-person visit. Nine telemedicine visits (9%) encountered technological barriers. Technological barriers were associated with lower overall satisfaction scores among both patients and physicians (p ≤ 0.01). CONCLUSION: We observed high levels of patient and physician satisfaction for telemedicine visits for management of genitourinary malignancies. Technological barriers were encountered by 9% of patients and were associated with decreased satisfaction.
PURPOSE: The rapid expansion of telemedicine has presented a challenge for the care of patients with genitourinary malignancies. We sought to assess patient and physician perspectives on the use of telemedicine for genitourinary cancer care. METHODS: We conducted a prospective cross-sectional study of patients who had telemedicine visits with urology, medical oncology, or radiation oncology for management of genitourinary malignancies from July-August 2020. Patients and physicians each received a questionnaire regarding the telemedicine experience. Responses were scored on a 5-point Likert scale. The primary outcomes of the study were patient and physician satisfaction. RESULTS: Of the 115 patients who enrolled, we received 96 patient responses and 46 physician responses. Overall, 77% of patients and 70% of physicians reported being "extremely satisfied" with the telemedicine encounter. Satisfaction was high among all components of the encounter including patient-physician communication, counseling, shared decision making, time spent, timeliness and efficiency, and convenience. Additionally, 78% of patients and 85% of physicians "strongly agreed" that they were able to discuss sensitive topics about cancer care as well as they could at an in-person visit. Nine telemedicine visits (9%) encountered technological barriers. Technological barriers were associated with lower overall satisfaction scores among both patients and physicians (p ≤ 0.01). CONCLUSION: We observed high levels of patient and physician satisfaction for telemedicine visits for management of genitourinary malignancies. Technological barriers were encountered by 9% of patients and were associated with decreased satisfaction.
Authors: Ann-Chatrin Linqvist Leonardsen; Ann Karin Helgesen; Andreas Stensvold; Jannik Magnussen; Vigdis A Grøndahl Journal: BMC Health Serv Res Date: 2022-04-06 Impact factor: 2.655