Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational Study
BackgroundWhile telemedicine has been expanding over the past decade, the COVID-19–related restrictions regarding in-person care have led to unprecedented levels of telemedicine utilization. To the authors’ knowledge, no studies to date have quantitatively analyzed both natio...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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JMIR Publications
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Interactive Journal of Medical Research |
| Online Access: | https://www.i-jmr.org/2022/1/e29880 |
| _version_ | 1797735379535659008 |
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| author | Emily Louise Vogt Brandon M Welch Brian E Bunnell Janelle F Barrera Samantha R Paige Marisa Owens Patricia Coffey Nancy Diazgranados David Goldman |
| author_facet | Emily Louise Vogt Brandon M Welch Brian E Bunnell Janelle F Barrera Samantha R Paige Marisa Owens Patricia Coffey Nancy Diazgranados David Goldman |
| author_sort | Emily Louise Vogt |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
BackgroundWhile telemedicine has been expanding over the past decade, the COVID-19–related restrictions regarding in-person care have led to unprecedented levels of telemedicine utilization. To the authors’ knowledge, no studies to date have quantitatively analyzed both national and regional trends in telemedicine utilization during the pandemic, both of which have key implications for informing health policy.
ObjectiveThis study aimed to investigate how trends in telemedicine utilization changed across the course of the COVID-19 pandemic.
MethodsUsing data from doxy.me, the largest free telemedicine platform, and the NIH (National Institutes of Health) Clinical Center, the largest clinical research hospital in the United States, we assessed changes in total telemedicine minutes, new provider registrations, monthly sessions, and average session length from March to November 2020. We also conducted a state-level analysis of how telemedicine expansion differed by region.
ResultsNational telemedicine utilization peaked in April 2020 at 291 million minutes and stabilized at 200 to 220 million monthly minutes from May to November 2020. Surges were strongest in New England and weakest in the South and West. Greater telemedicine expansion during the COVID-19 pandemic was geographically associated with fewer COVID-19 cases per capita. The nature of telemedicine visits also changed, as the average monthly visits per provider doubled and the average visit length decreased by 60%.
ConclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic led to an abrupt and subsequently sustained uptick in telemedicine utilization. Regional and institute-level differences in telemedicine utilization should be further investigated to inform policy and procedures for sustaining meaningful telemedicine use in clinical practice. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:57:16Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1e0dd33ef08a4b8ab659bfea26695eea |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1929-073X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T12:57:16Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | JMIR Publications |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Interactive Journal of Medical Research |
| spelling | doaj.art-1e0dd33ef08a4b8ab659bfea26695eea2023-08-28T20:27:43ZengJMIR PublicationsInteractive Journal of Medical Research1929-073X2022-01-01111e2988010.2196/29880Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational StudyEmily Louise Vogthttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-0951-6842Brandon M Welchhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-2214-9282Brian E Bunnellhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-4964-0688Janelle F Barrerahttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-1010-6365Samantha R Paigehttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-6141-5099Marisa Owenshttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-0593-5211Patricia Coffeyhttps://orcid.org/0000-0001-5725-9169Nancy Diazgranadoshttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-7415-8455David Goldmanhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-1724-5405 BackgroundWhile telemedicine has been expanding over the past decade, the COVID-19–related restrictions regarding in-person care have led to unprecedented levels of telemedicine utilization. To the authors’ knowledge, no studies to date have quantitatively analyzed both national and regional trends in telemedicine utilization during the pandemic, both of which have key implications for informing health policy. ObjectiveThis study aimed to investigate how trends in telemedicine utilization changed across the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. MethodsUsing data from doxy.me, the largest free telemedicine platform, and the NIH (National Institutes of Health) Clinical Center, the largest clinical research hospital in the United States, we assessed changes in total telemedicine minutes, new provider registrations, monthly sessions, and average session length from March to November 2020. We also conducted a state-level analysis of how telemedicine expansion differed by region. ResultsNational telemedicine utilization peaked in April 2020 at 291 million minutes and stabilized at 200 to 220 million monthly minutes from May to November 2020. Surges were strongest in New England and weakest in the South and West. Greater telemedicine expansion during the COVID-19 pandemic was geographically associated with fewer COVID-19 cases per capita. The nature of telemedicine visits also changed, as the average monthly visits per provider doubled and the average visit length decreased by 60%. ConclusionsThe COVID-19 pandemic led to an abrupt and subsequently sustained uptick in telemedicine utilization. Regional and institute-level differences in telemedicine utilization should be further investigated to inform policy and procedures for sustaining meaningful telemedicine use in clinical practice.https://www.i-jmr.org/2022/1/e29880 |
| spellingShingle | Emily Louise Vogt Brandon M Welch Brian E Bunnell Janelle F Barrera Samantha R Paige Marisa Owens Patricia Coffey Nancy Diazgranados David Goldman Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational Study Interactive Journal of Medical Research |
| title | Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational Study |
| title_full | Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational Study |
| title_fullStr | Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational Study |
| title_full_unstemmed | Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational Study |
| title_short | Quantifying the Impact of COVID-19 on Telemedicine Utilization: Retrospective Observational Study |
| title_sort | quantifying the impact of covid 19 on telemedicine utilization retrospective observational study |
| url | https://www.i-jmr.org/2022/1/e29880 |
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