Healthcare Disruptions and Use of Telehealth Services Among People With Multiple Sclerosis During the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Arch Phys Med Rehabil
; 103(7): 1379-1386, 2022 07.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-35093328
ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE:
The current study examined health care disruptions and use of telehealth services among people with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) during the COVID-19 pandemic.DESIGN:
Cross-sectional survey.SETTING:
General community.PARTICIPANTS:
Participants (N=163) included 70 pwMS and 93 healthy controls (HCs). The majority of respondents were from the United States (88%).INTERVENTIONS:
Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOMEMEASURES:
Rates of health care disruptions (eg, missing/canceling appointments, experiencing delays) and telehealth use for MS and non-MS medical care and mental health care.RESULTS:
In this U.S. majority, predominantly White, and high socioeconomic status sample, 38% to 50% of pwMS reported experiencing disruptions in their MS and non-MS medical care and 20% to 33% reported disruptions in their mental health care; this was significantly lower than the rates observed among HCs. Compared with HCs, pwMS were more likely to use telehealth than in-person services, especially for mental health care. The majority of pwMS and HCs reported being satisfied with telehealth services. Individuals with higher degrees of functional limitation experienced more health care disruptions and were more likely to use telehealth services than individuals with lower degrees of functional limitation.CONCLUSIONS:
Despite high health care disruption rates, pwMS frequently used and were highly satisfied with telehealth services during the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to physical limitations commonly observed in the MS population that may preclude travel, telehealth services should be continued even after resolution of the pandemic to expand access and reduce health care disparities.Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Contexto em Saúde:
1_ASSA2030
/
4_TD
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Telemedicina
/
COVID-19
/
Esclerose Múltipla
Tipo de estudo:
Observational_studies
/
Prevalence_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Humans
País/Região como assunto:
America do norte
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Arch Phys Med Rehabil
Ano de publicação:
2022
Tipo de documento:
Article