Patient Perception of Telehealth Services for Oncologic Care

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic was evaluated at a single center using a survey-based study to focus on patient perception of telehealth in the breast and gynecologic setting.

In the oncology setting, telehealth was rarely used prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. With the goal of limiting exposure to the coronavirus, telehealth tools evolved rapidly for healthcare visits. During this era of national crisis, a survey-based investigation evaluated patient perceptions of telehealth utility in oncologic care.

During the period between March 1, 2020, and June 30, 2020, a 34-question survey was administered to all patients receiving care at an outpatient center, including those who had visited the clinic as well as those who delayed or canceled appointments. Approximately 34% of the 622 patients completed the survey online or in the clinic. To assess and evaluate telehealth during the pandemic, the researchers adapted the validated Service User Technology Acceptability Questionnaire (SUTAQ), which assesses patient acceptability of telehealth via measures of accessibility, comfort, confidentiality, convenience, health benefits, satisfaction, usability, privacy, and security, with in-home telemonitoring.

All patients who completed the survey had a history of ductal carcinoma in situ/atypical ductal hyperplasia/lobular carcinoma in situ, invasive breast cancer, or gynecologic malignancy. During the 4-month evaluation interval, 35% of the survey respondents participated in a telehealth visit.

For all survey questions, if the patient selected mildly, moderately, or strongly agreed on the SUTAQ scale, their response was considered to be “agreement.” Of the telehealth participants, 92% felt that telehealth saved them time, 72% felt it increased their access to care, and 81% felt it helped improve their health. Related to telehealth usage, 12% of patients felt uncomfortable, and 6% had apprehensions about confidentiality.

Overall, the majority (92%) of patients were satisfied with the telehealth services they received and 89% would recommend these services to people with similar health conditions. While only slightly more than a third (35%) of patients felt that telehealth could serve as a replacement for their normal healthcare, a large majority (93%) reported it could be a good supplement to their care. More than three-quarters (76%) of patients expressed interest in participating in telehealth visits in the future.

Generally, during the COVID-19 pandemic, patients were satisfied with the use of telehealth services for oncologic care. While most patients did not find telehealth to be a suitable replacement for live clinical visits, they expressed that it was a good supplement to their routine care. Furthermore, a desire to continue to participate in telehealth visits was expressed by the majority of patients. As a long-term supplement to in-person clinical care of patients with cancer, telehealth services should be carefully adapted. The benefits for patient satisfaction, improved time efficiency, and increased care access, particularly for high-risk patients, should be weighed when considering telehealth services.

Source:

Zimmerman BS, Seidman D, Berger N, et al. Patient perception of telehealth services for breast and gynecologic cancer care during the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic in NYC: a single center survey-based study. Presented at 2020 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium, December 8-11, 2020. SS2-08.