Abstract
Delivery of prenatal care via telehealth has the potential to improve access to care and decrease health disparities. The Covid-19 pandemic precipitated changes to healthcare service provision including increased use of telehealth. The experience of Maternal Fetal Medicine (MFM) providers can help identify barriers encountered in the implementation of telehealth. We aimed to identify differences in barriers experienced by MFM providers by US region and urbanicity. We conducted a web-based, anonymous survey of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine membership in December 2020, assessing telehealth use during the Covid-19 pandemic. Users of telehealth were defined by reported use of live video consultations before or after the start of the pandemic. Comparisons by region and urbanicity were performed using Fisher’s exact test and a p-value of < 0.05 was considered significant. The survey response rate was 16%. Out of 373 completed surveys, 330 (88%) were users of telehealth. Respondents practiced in the South (31%), West (28%), Northeast (21%), and Midwest (20%). Practice location was 65% urban, 21% suburban, and 14% rural or small town. There was no difference by telehealth user status and region (p=0.29) or urbanicity (p=0.13). A majority providers reported practicing in a university hospital setting (52%). 51% of respondents cited patient access to internet/data plans as a barrier to telehealth usage, independent of region or urbanicity. 45% reported software/hardware usability as a telehealth barrier across all regions and practice locations. Of the total respondents, less than 25% of providers reported patient privacy concerns or telehealth set-up costs as barriers to telehealth in their practice. Maternal fetal medicine providers face similar barriers, independent of US region or practice setting. It is important to identify barriers to telehealth to ensure more equitable access across US regions and urban and rural practice settings. These results highlight opportunities to advance telehealth, in effort to improve overall perinatal health.View Large Image Figure ViewerDownload Hi-res image Download (PPT)
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
