Implementation, service effectiveness and satisfaction with teleconsultation services in China during the COVID-19 pandemic: from the Perspective of Primary Health Care Professionals

Objective: This study aims to evaluate satisfaction and service effectiveness of primary hospital physicians participating in the National Telemedicine Center of China during the COVID-19 period, and to identify potential improvement suggestions.Methods: An online questionnaire was developed to assess the impact and satisfaction of teleconsultation services. A teleconsultation manager from each of the 98 hospitals randomly invited the medical staff involved in teleconsultation to complete the online questionnaire.Results: A total of 379 health care professionals responded to the online questionnaire, with a mean age of 36.74 years. Out of these respondents, 95.5% had a positive attitude towards teleconsultation during the epidemic. Only 6.6% believed that teleconsultation systems were not useful in preventing and controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. Those respondents who were very satisfied with teleconsultation participated in it 1.81 times per week averagely. Factors related to satisfaction included weekly participation frequency(P=.003), patient data quality(P=.023), equipment operation proficiency(P=.006), audio and video clarity and smoothness (P=.004, P=.020), environmental satisfaction(P=.032), and incentive measures of title promotion (P=.003). The main challenges in teleconsultation were the lack of understanding of medical staff and the public, insufficiently advanced software and hardware equipment, and the lack of optimization of service processes.Conclusions: Primary hospital doctors demonstrate high satisfaction levels, suggesting that teleconsultation could be an effective tool for patients seeking medical care in areas under lockdown during the COVID-19 pandemic. The primary barriers to teleconsultation include lack of public understanding and unadvanced equipment. These findings should inform future efforts to establish regional telemedicine programs in the post-COVID-19 era.