Smartphone-Based Telemedicine Service at Palliative Care Unit during Nationwide Lockdown: Our Initial Experience at a Tertiary Care Cancer Hospital.
COVID-19
palliative care
telemedicine
Journal
Indian journal of palliative care
ISSN: 0973-1075
Titre abrégé: Indian J Palliat Care
Pays: United States
ID NLM: 101261221
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
Jun 2020
Jun 2020
Historique:
received:
21
05
2020
accepted:
22
05
2020
entrez:
22
10
2020
pubmed:
23
10
2020
medline:
23
10
2020
Statut:
ppublish
Résumé
With the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdown, and fear from contagion, the advantages of telemedicine are clearly outweighing the setbacks by minimizing the need for individuals to visit health-care facilities. Our study aims to assess how palliative medicine physicians could follow up on cancer patients and barriers they faced, discuss their results, and evaluate their treatment response with the help of telemedicine. We conducted a prospective analysis of the smartphone-based telemedicine service at our palliative care (PC) unit from March 25, 2020, to May 13, 2020. We recorded the patient's reason for call, main barriers to a hospital visit, and the assistance given to them by the physician on call. Each caller was asked to measure his/her satisfaction with the service on a 4-point scale. Out of 314 patients, 143 (45.54%) belonged to Delhi and 171 (54.46%) belonged to other states. 157 patients sought help for symptom management; 86 patients needed to restock their opioid medications. Seventy-one patients required information regarding their oncological treatments requiring consultation from other departments. Titration of oral opioids and medication prescription ( Telemedicine is the future of health-care delivery systems. In PC, we deal with immunocompromised debilitated cancer patients and telemedicine is immensely helpful for us to provide holistic integrated care to these patients who are unable to visit hospitals regularly.
Sections du résumé
BACKGROUND AND AIMS
OBJECTIVE
With the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdown, and fear from contagion, the advantages of telemedicine are clearly outweighing the setbacks by minimizing the need for individuals to visit health-care facilities. Our study aims to assess how palliative medicine physicians could follow up on cancer patients and barriers they faced, discuss their results, and evaluate their treatment response with the help of telemedicine.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
METHODS
We conducted a prospective analysis of the smartphone-based telemedicine service at our palliative care (PC) unit from March 25, 2020, to May 13, 2020. We recorded the patient's reason for call, main barriers to a hospital visit, and the assistance given to them by the physician on call. Each caller was asked to measure his/her satisfaction with the service on a 4-point scale.
RESULTS
RESULTS
Out of 314 patients, 143 (45.54%) belonged to Delhi and 171 (54.46%) belonged to other states. 157 patients sought help for symptom management; 86 patients needed to restock their opioid medications. Seventy-one patients required information regarding their oncological treatments requiring consultation from other departments. Titration of oral opioids and medication prescription (
CONCLUSION
CONCLUSIONS
Telemedicine is the future of health-care delivery systems. In PC, we deal with immunocompromised debilitated cancer patients and telemedicine is immensely helpful for us to provide holistic integrated care to these patients who are unable to visit hospitals regularly.
Identifiants
pubmed: 33088083
doi: 10.4103/IJPC.IJPC_161_20
pii: IJPC-26-31
pmc: PMC7535006
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Pagination
S31-S35Informations de copyright
Copyright: © 2020 Indian Journal of Palliative Care.
Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts
There are no conflicts of interest.
Références
J Pain Symptom Manage. 2020 Jul;60(1):e5-e7
pubmed: 32240755
J Clin Oncol. 2020 Mar 20;38(9):905-914
pubmed: 32023162
Lancet. 2020 May 9;395(10235):1467-1469
pubmed: 32333842
Int Urogynecol J. 2020 Jun;31(6):1063-1089
pubmed: 32342112
CA Cancer J Clin. 2018 Sep;68(5):356-376
pubmed: 30277572
BMC Med Inform Decis Mak. 2020 Feb 11;20(1):30
pubmed: 32046699
Curr Oncol Rep. 2017 Jun;19(6):37
pubmed: 28417310
J Pain Symptom Manage. 2007 May;33(5):615-22
pubmed: 17482057
J Am Coll Surg. 2020 Aug;231(2):216-222.e2
pubmed: 32360960
J Med Internet Res. 2018 Feb 02;20(2):e25
pubmed: 29396387
Wound Repair Regen. 2018 Dec;26 Suppl 1:S19-S26
pubmed: 30460767
Ann Surg. 2020 Aug;272(2):e81-e83
pubmed: 32675505
Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2017 Oct 25;14(11):
pubmed: 29068377
Future Oncol. 2020 Jun;16(18):1225-1227
pubmed: 32356460
J Oncol Pract. 2006 Sep;2(5):228-30
pubmed: 20859340