The increase in telehealth usage during the COVID-19 pandemic has caused a change in physicians’ perspectives on its effectiveness, with primary and specialty care physicians expressing more favor toward telehealth compared to their surgical counterparts, according to data from the National Electronic Health Records Survey. The study, conducted by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics, reveals that a majority of primary care physicians (76.7%) and medical specialists (73.1%) believe they can provide a similar quality of care through telehealth as with in-person visits, “to some extent or a great extent.” This sentiment contrasts with only half of surgical specialists (50.6%) sharing the same belief. The survey, which includes 10,302 sampled physicians, highlights varying attitudes toward telehealth technology and its appropriateness across different medical specialties.
Telehealth utilization among physicians has experienced a remarkable transformation from 2019 to 2021, surging from 15.4% to an impressive 86.5%. This increase highlights the healthcare sector’s growing dependence on telemedicine technologies, prompting a thorough exploration of how this change impacts the quality of healthcare delivery. Extracted from the National Electronic Health Records Survey, the research not only provides statistical insights but also covers the preferences and attitudes of physicians, categorizing them into primary care physicians, medical specialists, and surgical specialists. This approach reveals insights into their perspectives on telehealth, with medical specialists standing out as distinctive stakeholders, reporting that over a quarter (27.4%) of their patient visits involve the integration of telemedicine technology.
The study also revealed that primary care physicians and medical specialists demonstrate higher satisfaction with telehealth technology compared to their surgical counterparts. The report reveals that 65.5% of primary care physicians and 63.6% of medical specialists express satisfaction with telehealth, whereas only 49.5% of surgical specialists report a similar sentiment. This difference in satisfaction levels highlights on the varied experiences and perceptions of different physician groups, emphasizing the importance of recognizing and addressing these distinctions within telehealth.
A variety of perspectives among physicians becomes evident when evaluating the appropriateness of telehealth for specific specialties. Surgical specialists exhibit higher skepticism, with 49.7% asserting that telemedicine is not suitable for their specialty or patient type. Primary care physicians and medical specialists display more optimism, with only 15.5% and 26.7%, respectively, expressing reservations about telehealth’s appropriateness. These varying attitudes highlight the need for targeted approaches and interventions to address specialty-specific concerns and improve the integration of telehealth across diverse medical disciplines.
This perspective on telehealth aligns with broader trends in the healthcare sector, particularly as telehealth evolves after the public health emergency (PHE). The ongoing integration of telehealth into various medical specialties emphasizes the need for strategies that cater to the unique dynamics of primary, medical, and surgical care disciplines. Understanding these perspectives is necessary in informing strategies that increase telehealth adoption and improve the quality of care across diverse medical specialties.
