Seed project name
Exploring the effectiveness of video consultations in primary healthcare: international survey & analysis
Project manager
Bo Andersson
Applicants
Bo Andersson, Department of Informatics, Faculty of Technology, Linnaeus University, Evalill Nilsson and Pär Eriksson, Department of Medicine and Optometry, Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Linnaeus University, John O’Donoghue and Ekanki Chawla, Department of Primary Care and Public Health, Imperial College London.
Timetable
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Subject
eHealth, (Department of Informatics, Faculty of Technology)
Linnaeus Knowledge Environment
Digital Transformations
More about the project
With the rapid rise of technology, there has been an increasing use of video applications in all aspects of healthcare, including primary care and home health care. When introducing video as a method of consultation between primary care clinicians and patients, there are many benefits and risks that need to be considered such as time efficiency, convenience, safety, technology platform, and lack of non-verbal cues.
There have been significant differences in the acceptability and feasibility of video consultations, especially in the context of general practitioners and clinicians. Some research studies suggest that 50% of primary care clinicians believe that face-to-face consultations are more effective than video consultations and that there is much more reluctance to adapt to video consultations when it comes to general practitioners, as opposed to patients.
Dealing with the restrictions on patient movements during the COVID-19 pandemic over the past year has significantly increased the demand for video consulting services while also enabling them to become more routine across the globe.
The ability for online healthcare consultation platforms to provide equitable access to primary care in our communities continues to evolve and grow. Hence, this project aims to explore the effectiveness of video consultations in primary care settings from both clinicians' and patients' perspectives.
Objectives of the project are:
- Investigate changes in workload and efficiency for caregivers due to online counseling.
- Evaluate patients' and primary care physicians' experience of online counseling, as well as primary care physicians' care management via online counseling.
- Explore challenges and limitations related to the establishment of systems for online counselling in primary care.
This is a major international study of video consultations in primary care. It is coordinated from University College Cork (UCC), Ireland and is led by Dr. John O'Donoghue who works at UCC and the Department of Primary Care and Public Health, Imperial College London. The study is part of doctoral student Ekanki Chawla's dissertation work and she will do the lion's share of the work on the study. At the time of writing, there is a participation from England, Ireland, Scotland, Denmark, Estonia, Malawi, Norway, Poland, Singapore, Canada, USA, Australia, Brazil and Turkey. For Linnaeus University, it is largely about administering the Swedish part of the study.
The seed project is part of the research in the Linnaeus Knowledge Environment Digital Transformations.
