Health care utilization following "digi-physical" assessment compared to physical assessment for infectious symptoms in primary care.
| Title: | Health care utilization following "digi-physical" assessment compared to physical assessment for infectious symptoms in primary care. |
|---|---|
| Authors: | Entezarjou A; Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö/Family Medicine, Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Box 50332, 20213 Malmö, Sweden.; Sjöbeck M; Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö/Family Medicine, Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Box 50332, 20213 Malmö, Sweden.; Midlöv P; Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö/Family Medicine, Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Box 50332, 20213 Malmö, Sweden.; Nymberg VM; Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö/Family Medicine, Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Box 50332, 20213 Malmö, Sweden.; Vigren L; Capio Go, Gothenburg, Sweden.; Labaf A; Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Lund, Sweden.; Jakobsson U; Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö/Family Medicine, Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Box 50332, 20213 Malmö, Sweden.; Calling S; Department of Clinical Sciences in Malmö/Family Medicine, Center for Primary Health Care Research, Lund University, Box 50332, 20213 Malmö, Sweden. |
| Source: | BMC primary care [BMC Prim Care] 2022 Jan 12; Vol. 23, pp. 4. Date of Electronic Publication: 2022 Jan 12 (Print Publication: 2022). |
| Publication Type: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Journal Info: | Publisher: BioMed Central Ltd Country of Publication: England NLM ID: 9918300889006676 Publication Model: eCollection Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 2731-4553 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 27314553 NLM ISO Abbreviation: BMC Prim Care Subsets: PubMed not MEDLINE |
| Imprint Name(s): | Original Publication: [London] : BioMed Central Ltd., [2022]- |
| Abstract: | Background: The use of chat-based digital visits (eVisits) to assess infectious symptoms in primary care is rapidly increasing. The "digi-physical" model of care uses eVisits as the first line of assessment while assuming a certain proportion of patients will inevitably need to be further assessed through urgent physical examination within 48 h. It is unclear to what extent this approach can mitigate physical visits compared to assessing patients directly using office visits.; Methods: This pre-COVID-19-pandemic observational study followed up "digi-physical" eVisit patients (n = 1188) compared to office visit patients (n = 599) with respiratory or urinary symptoms. Index visits occurred between March 30th 2016 and March 29th 2019. The primary outcome was subsequent physical visits to physicians within two weeks using registry data from Skåne county, Sweden (Region Skånes Vårddatabas, RSVD).; Results: No significant differences in subsequent physical visits within two weeks (excluding the first 48 h) were noted following "digi-physical" care compared to office visits (179 (18.0%) vs. 102 (17.6%), P = .854). As part of the "digital-physical" concept, a significantly larger proportion of eVisit patients had a physical visit within 48 h compared to corresponding office visit patients (191 (16.1%) vs. 19 (3.2%), P |
| Competing Interests: | Competing interestsAE: currently employed by Capio AB. AL: stock ownership in Doctrin AB. LV: previously employed by Capio AB. Other authors declared no conflicts of interest. |
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| Contributed Indexing: | Keywords: Infection; Primary care; Telehealth; Telemedicine; Utilization; eVisits |
| Molecular Sequence: | ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03474887 |
| Entry Date(s): | Date Created: 20220117 Latest Revision: 20240116 |
| Update Code: | 20260130 |
| PubMed Central ID: | PMC8753946 |
| DOI: | 10.1186/s12875-021-01618-2 |
| PMID: | 35036998 |
| Database: | MEDLINE |
Journal Article