Abstract
Objectives. To assess the impact of live interactive telecardiology on diagnosis and disease management, patients' quality of life, and time- and cost-savings. Methods. All consecutive patients who attended or were referred to the teleclinics for suspected cardiac problems in two hospitals in remote areas of Jordan during the study period were included in the study. Patients were interviewed for relevant information and their quality of life was assessed during the first visit and 8 weeks after the last visit. Results. A total of 76 patients were included in this study. Final diagnosis and treatment plan were established as part of the telecardiology consultations in 71.1% and 77.3% of patients, respectively. Patients' travel was avoided for 38 (50.0%) who were managed locally. The majority of patients perceived that the visit to the telecardiology clinic results in less travel time (96.1%), less waiting time (98.1%), and lower cost (100.0%). Telecardiology consultations resulted in an improvement in the quality of life after two months of the first visit. Conclusions. Telecardiology care in remote areas of Jordan would improve the access to health care, help to reach proper diagnosis and establish the treatment plan, and improve the quality of life.
Highlights
International Journal of Telemedicine and ApplicationsTelemedicine is the use of information and communication technology to provide health care services for people in remote areas where the health care providers are not available [1]
Telecardiology care in remote areas of Jordan would improve the access to health care, help to reach proper diagnosis and establish the treatment plan, and improve the quality of life
The majority of telecardiology consultations were done in Mafraq Governmental Hospital (MGH) and the majority of patients (81.6%) were referred from outside clinic/center
Summary
International Journal of Telemedicine and ApplicationsTelemedicine is the use of information and communication technology to provide health care services for people in remote areas where the health care providers are not available [1]. Telecardiology, an application of telemedicine in cardiology, has been shown to improve the standard of cardiac care by providing diagnostic support for health professionals to safely manage their patients [6]. Studies have demonstrated that telecardiology improves the management of cardiac diseases in remote and rural populations in a cost-effective manner, reduces the number of unnecessary hospital referrals and admissions, results in avoidance of travel for patients in rural and remote areas, and improves health professionals’ knowledge base [7,8,9,10,11]. Some systematic reviews showed that telemedicine has a beneficial effect on health related quality of life among patients with heart failure [12,13,14]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary 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 callMore From: International journal of telemedicine and applications
Disclaimer: 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.
