Jennifer Isautier|Tessa Copp|Julie Ayre|Erin Cvejic|Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz|Carys Batcup|Carissa Bonner|Rachael H Dodd|Brooke Nickel|Kristen Pickles|Samuel Cornell|Thomas Dakin|Kirsten McCaffery
People’s Experiences and Satisfaction With Telehealth During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Australia: Cross-Sectional Survey Study
University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Wollongong|Sydney Local Health District|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney|University of Sydney
background response covid19 pandemic telehealth rapidly adopted deliver health care services around world date studies compared peoples experiences telehealth services pandemic australia experiences traditional inperson visits objective study aimed compare participants perceptions telehealth consults perceptions traditional inperson visits investigate whether people believe telehealth services would useful pandemic methods national crosssectional community survey conducted june 5 june 12 2020 australia total 1369 participants aged 18 years lived australia recruited via targeted advertisements social media ie facebook instagram participants responded survey questions telehealth experience included freetext response option generalized linear model used estimate adjusted relative risks poorer telehealth experience traditional inperson visit experience content analysis performed determine reasons telehealth experiences worse traditional inperson visit experiences results 596 telehealth users majority respondents n369 619 stated telehealth experience good better traditional inperson medical appointment experience average respondents perceived telehealth would moderately useful useful medical appointments covid19 pandemic ends mean 367 sd 11 male p007 history depression anxiety p016 lower patient activation scores ie individuals willingness take role managing healthhealth care p036 significantly associated poor telehealth experience total 6 overarching themes identified freetext responses participants telehealth experiences poorer traditional inperson medical appointment experiences follows communication effective limitations technology issues obtaining prescriptions pathology results reduced confidence doctor additional burden complex care inability physically examined conclusions based samples responses telehealth appointment experiences comparable traditional inperson medical appointment experiences telehealth may worthwhile mode health care delivery pandemic continues may continue worthwhile pandemic