Advancing ocular oncology care through teleophthalmology: a patient-centric perspective

Abstract

PurposeAssessing patient satisfaction is an important component of understanding a program's efficacy and quality. The purpose of this study is to evaluate patient satisfaction with a teleophthalmology program tailored for ocular oncology that provides screening, remote assessment, care planning, and follow-up and its effectiveness in addressing their health care needs. Study designRetrospective survey. MethodsAn adapted version of the Telehealth Satisfaction Scale, consisting of 8 questions and 5 additional questions specific to the teleophthalmology program, was used to survey patients. The teleophthalmology program involves diagnostic imaging, remote physician assessments, and follow-up phone calls from health care team members to deliver results to patients. For reporting, the Consensus-Based Checklist for Reporting of Survey Studies was used. ResultsAmong the 95 patients contacted, 91 agreed to participate in the survey (96% response rate). Participants exhibited high overall satisfaction with the teleophthalmology program, reflected in a mean Telehealth Satisfaction Scale score of 28.88 (SD = 3.35 of 32). The median number of teleophthalmology visits completed was 4.0 (range of 1–8 appointments). T-tests explored satisfaction differences across demographics and teleophthalmology visits. No significant variations were found on the basis of age (P = 0.56), urban or rural residence (P = 0.17), or the number of telemedicine appointments (P = 0.51). ConclusionsThis analysis displays high satisfaction levels among patients within an ocular oncology clinic participating in the current telemedicine program, irrespective of age, geography, or number of teleophthalmology visits. Participants reported having their health care needs met with minimal clinical encounters due to remote consultations and telephone communications.