How would you like to “see” your dermatologist via your computer instead of going to a traditional office visit? As health care has become more expensive, managing certain conditions through e-visits has become a worthy option to consider. A 2010 study tested this idea and came away with these results.
The study involved 151 patients with mild to moderate facial acne who each were first examined with an initial office visit where researchers took three baseline photographs of their faces.
Subjects assigned to the online group were given digital cameras and instructed on how to take photographs at home, to be compared with their baseline ones. E-visit patients received four online visits as follow up while the control group attended four in-office visits.
The study had some notable results. Of the 54 patients who participated in the online visits, 39 needed to resubmit photos due to poor quality or other technical errors (problems uploading).
Twenty percent of the online group dropped out, which statistically was not outside of what was estimated, but did indicate to the researchers that those who are motivated to participate in e-visits need time and encouragement to adapt to this new practice.
At the same time, most subjects of the e-visit group felt their dermatologist could assess their acne just as well online as in person (76 percent), that questions and concerns were addressed equally as well (83 percent) and 91 percent would consider using e-visits again. Dermatologists were more likely to report a greater desire to manage the patient visits online versus in their office.
The online visits and in-office visits took about the same amount of time though on average, patients spent 22 minutes waiting to be seen in the office and almost half of the office visit patients spent between 30 and 60 minutes traveling to the office.
The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) supports enhanced-access physician-patient interactions through a secure electronic means, provided that the patient has previously received care from the physician.
This link shows guidelines to manage e-visits: http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/policy/policies/e/evisits.html/
E-visits do have a place in the future of health care, where 49.9 million Americans are without health insurance and only about 50 percent have it provided through their employer. (cnn.money)
Taking time away from work to seek followup from a physician can be difficult, especially if long distances are needed to be traveled. Additionally, it can be a benefit to track certain conditions using a series of photos to detect changes that cannot be accurately noted by the doctor in writing.
The researchers believe that use of e-visits for dermatology could extend into other areas of chronic skin disease management such as eczema and psoriasis. Other diseases such as diabetes and hypertension could also be monitored using electronic platforms as technological tools are incorporated into the future of health care reform.
Sources:
Online Dermatology Visits as Effective as In-Person Visits By Chris Emery, Contributing Writer, MedPage Today. April 21, 2010. Accessed Jan 21, 2012
through
http://www.fiercehealthit.com/story/study-e-visits-produce-similar-outco...
Watson , Alice J., MBChB, MRCP, MPH et. al. A Randomized Trial to Evaluate the Efficacy of Online Follow-up Visits in the Management of Acne.
Arch Dermatol. 2010;146(4):406-411.
http://archderm.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/146/4/406
E-visits -- AAFP Policies -- American Academy of Family Physicians. Accessed Jan 21, 2012.
http://www.aafp.org/online/en/home/policy/policies/e/evisits.html
Number of people without health insurance climbs. CNN.Money. Accessed Jan 21, 2012. http://money.cnn.com/2011/09/13/news/economy/census_bureau_health_insura...
Michele is an R.N. freelance writer with a special interest in woman’s healthcare and quality of care issues. Other articles by Michele are at www.helium.com/users/487540/show_articles
Edited by Jody Smith