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. 2024 Feb;30(2):393-401.
doi: 10.1177/1357633X211066235. Epub 2021 Dec 22.

Use and impact of virtual primary care on quality and safety: The public's perspectives during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ana Luisa Neves  1 , Jackie van Dael  1 , Niki O'Brien  1 , Kelsey Flott  1 , Saira Ghafur  1 , Ara Darzi  1 , Erik Mayer  1
Affiliations

Use and impact of virtual primary care on quality and safety: The public's perspectives during the COVID-19 pandemic

Ana Luisa Neves et al. J Telemed Telecare. 2024 Feb.

Abstract

Introduction: With the onset of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), primary care has swiftly transitioned from face-to-face to virtual care, yet it remains largely unknown how this has impacted the quality and safety of care. We aim to evaluate patient use of virtual primary care models during COVID-19, including change in uptake, perceived impact on the quality and safety of care and willingness of future use.

Methodology: An online cross-sectional survey was administered to the public across the United Kingdom, Sweden, Italy and Germany. McNemar tests were conducted to test pre- and post-pandemic differences in uptake for each technology. One-way analysis of variance was conducted to examine patient experience ratings and perceived impacts on healthcare quality and safety across demographic characteristics.

Results: Respondents (n = 6326) reported an increased use of telephone consultations ( + 6.3%, p < .001), patient-initiated services ( + 1.5%, n = 98, p < 0.001), video consultations ( + 1.4%, p < .001), remote triage ( + 1.3, p < 0.001) and secure messaging systems ( + 0.9%, p = .019). Experience rates using virtual care technologies were higher for men (2.4 ± 1.0 vs. 2.3 ± 0.9, p < .001), those with higher literacy (2.8 ± 1.0 vs. 2.3 ± 0.9, p < .001), and participants from Germany (2.5 ± 0.9, p < .001). Healthcare timeliness and efficiency were the dimensions most often reported as being positively impacted by virtual technologies (60.2%, n = 2793 and 55.7%, n = 2,401, respectively), followed by effectiveness (46.5%, n = 1802), safety (45.5%, n = 1822), patient-centredness (45.2%, n = 45.2) and equity (42.9%, n = 1726). Interest in future use was highest for telephone consultations (55.9%), patient-initiated digital services (56.1%), secure messaging systems (43.4%), online triage (35.1%), video consultations (37.0%) and chat consultations (30.1%), although significant variation was observed between countries and patient characteristics.

Discussion: Future work must examine the drivers and determinants of positive experiences using remote care to co-create a supportive environment that ensures equitable adoption and use. Comparative analysis between countries and health systems offers the opportunity for policymakers to learn from best practices internationally.

Keywords: COVID-19; Telemedicine; primary care.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of conflicting interestsThe author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Percentage of usage of each respective technology before and after COVID-19, by country (in %).
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Respondents’ perceptions of how virtual care technologies have impacted on each aspect of care received, by country (in %).
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Respondents' future willingness to use of each respective technology after COVID-19, by country (in %).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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