About
COVID-19 necessitated a rapid addition of telehealth, or virtual visits, for safe healthcare delivery. The practice of oncology has made these accommodations to protect patients with cancer from COVID-19 exposure in healthcare settings. The Parkview Cancer Institute (PCI) successfully shifted care delivery from in-person to virtual visits by redefining staff roles to provide appropriate technological support to patients.
In a previous cross-sectional survey of PCI patients using virtual visits, respondents reported that pre-appointment assistance helped them set up the virtual visit. Furthermore, 87% indicated that they either ‘agreed’ or ‘strongly agreed’ that they received quality care during their virtual visit. Despite this positive experience, only 52% of respondents agreed they would like to continue ‘some types of PCI virtual visits after COVID restrictions are lifted.’ Of open-ended responses, 36% expressed a preference for in-person visits rather than virtual visits for their cancer care. Reasons related to satisfaction with telehealth visits include convenience, ease of use and improved access. In this project, we are extending this earlier survey to examine whether patient characteristics, such as emotional distress, cancer stage, and comfort with technology, are related to telehealth satisfaction.
PCI patients who have had a virtual visit with a Parkview provider are asked to complete an anonymous electronic survey including questions about their experience with their visits, as well as their emotional distress levels, cancer stage and comfort with technology.
Our overall goal is to determine if telehealth is desirable for patients in different stages of their disease process or distress levels and with different levels of comfort with technology. Ultimately, we plan to use these results to help provide support for cancer patients in their engagement with telehealth services.
Partners
- Parkview Mirro Center for Research and Innovation
- Joseph McCollom, DO, PPG - Oncology
- Parkview Packnett Family Cancer Institute
Funding
Publications
Press