Abstract
BackgroundDuring the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), internet hospitals in China were engaged with epidemic prevention and control, offering epidemic-related online services and medical support to the public.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to explore the role of internet hospitals during the prevention and control of the COVID-19 outbreak in China.MethodsOnline epidemic-related consultations from multicenter internet hospitals in China during the COVID-19 epidemic were collected. The counselees were described and classified into seven type groups. Symptoms were recorded and compared with reported patients with COVID-19. Hypochondriacal suspicion and offline visit motivation were detected within each counselees’ group to evaluate the social panic of the epidemic along with the consequent medical-seeking behaviors. The counselees’ motivation and the doctors’ recommendation for an offline visit were compared. Risk factors affecting the counselees’ tendency of hypochondriacal suspicion and offline visit motivation were explored by logistic regression models. The epidemic prevention and control measures based on internet hospitals were listed, and the corresponding effects were discussed.ResultsA total of 4913 consultations were enrolled for analysis with the median age of the counselees at 28 years (IQR 22-33 years). There were 104 (2.12%) healthy counselees, 147 (2.99%) hypochondriacal counselees, 34 (0.69%) exposed counselees, 853 (17.36%) mildly suspicious counselees, 42 (0.85%) moderately suspicious counselees, 3550 (72.26%) highly suspicious counselees, and 183 (3.72%) severely suspicious counselees. A total of 94.20% (n=4628) of counselees had epidemic-related symptoms with a distribution similar to those of COVID-19. The hypochondriacal suspicion (n=2167, 44.11%) was common. The counselees’ motivation and the doctors’ recommendation for offline visits were inconsistent (P<.001) with a Cohen kappa score of 0.039, indicating improper medical-seeking behaviors. Adult counselees (odds ratio [OR]=1.816, P<.001) with epidemiological exposure (OR 7.568, P<.001), shortness of breath (OR 1.440, P=.001), diarrhea (OR 1.272, P=.04), and unrelated symptoms (OR 1.509, P<.001) were more likely to have hypochondriacal suspicion. Counselees with severe illnesses (OR 2.303, P<.001), fever (OR 1.660, P<.001), epidemiological exposure history (OR 1.440, P=.01), and hypochondriacal suspicion (OR 4.826, P<.001) were more likely to attempt an offline visit. Reattending counselees (OR 0.545, P=.002) were less motivated to go to the offline clinic.ConclusionsInternet hospitals can serve different types of epidemic counselees, offer essential medical supports to the public during the COVID-19 outbreak, reduce the social panic, promote social distancing, enhance the public’s ability of self-protection, correct improper medical-seeking behaviors, reduce the chance of nosocomial cross-infection, and facilitate epidemiological screening, thus, playing an important role on preventing and controlling COVID-19.
Highlights
From late 2019 to early 2020, an outbreak of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spread throughout China and soon became a global concern [1,2,3]
The internet hospitals in China, which is a new approach to outpatient health care that provides health services via internet technologies [6], were engaged in the epidemic prevention and control, opening up free COVID-19 consultation services as the main form of remote medical services for the public during the epidemic
We assessed the social panic and the public’s medical needs during the COVID-19 outbreak, revealed the effects of internet hospitals on the epidemic prevention and control, and expounded and explored the managing strategies to make the internet hospitals play a greater role in the infectious public health emergency responses
Summary
From late 2019 to early 2020, an outbreak of novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spread throughout China and soon became a global concern [1,2,3]. The Chinese government had adopted a series of administrative measures to stop the spread of the epidemic [4], including promulgating decrees that required the domestic internet hospitals to vigorously carry out remote medical services in response to the epidemic [5]. Under such circumstances, the internet hospitals in China, which is a new approach to outpatient health care that provides health services via internet technologies [6], were engaged in the epidemic prevention and control, opening up free COVID-19 consultation services as the main form of remote medical services for the public during the epidemic. During the spread of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), internet hospitals in China were engaged with epidemic prevention and control, offering epidemic-related online services and medical support to the public
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 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.
