A comparative analysis on the acceptance and use of telemedicine between physicians and patients in selected Metro Manila healthcare institutions

Abstract

Telemedicine is no longer only relevant to the geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas (GIDA). Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the Philippine government has been encouraging nationwide adoption of remote medical care to lessen the risks for both patients and healthcare workers. Its implementation, however, lacks an established framework from the government. Given these conditions, it is important to engage in studies investigating the existing acceptance and use of emerging technology such as telemedicine. This study compared the acceptance and use of telemedicine of Filipino physicians and patients in selected Metro Manila healthcare institutions. A survey questionnaire patterned from the modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) model of Venkatesh et al. (2016) was constructed to gather data. It was deployed via Google forms to 120 respondents, including 60 physicians and 60 patients. The data gathered were then analyzed by Spearman-rank order correlation and Cramér's V for the correlation analysis, whereas descriptive statistics was used in analyzing the user groups’ demographics, used and preferred modalities, and overall rating of experience in telemedicine consultation. For the physician user group, relationships between the type of hospital and facilitating conditions (FC), and computer anxiety (CA) and performance expectancy (PE) have yielded significant correlations (p-value<.05). For the patient user group, relationships between the type of hospital and effort expectancy (EE), and CA and FC have significant correlations. Furthermore, both user groups exhibited significant correlations between perceived security (PS) and the four constructs of telemedicine acceptance and use, and likewise with the four constructs and behavioral intention (BI). The majority of both user groups use and prefer social media platforms in a telemedicine consultation. Moreover, data also revealed that the majority of user groups were satisfied with their telemedicine experience. Both user groups have varying factors at play on using telemedicine based on the limited data. This study sheds light on what areas of concern may be addressed for future research and policies which can improve the development of telemedicine in the country. For future studies, the researchers recommend the utilization of the structural equation modeling (SEM) statistical analysis technique to determine the moderating effects of variables involved in the study.