Telemedicine Applications in Primary Health Care During a Crisis: A Scoping Review

Abstract

A health crisis can disrupt primary health care where telemedicine technology can facilitate the delivery of healthcare services. This study aimed to identify telemedicine applications in primary health care during a crisis.This research was conducted by scoping review method. All studies had been systematically searched through "Web of Science", "Embase", "PubMed", "MEDLINE", "SID", and "Magiran" databases with appropriate keywords in three groups: "telemedicine", "primary health care" and "health crises". Among 2949 screened studies, 76 were included in this research. Finally, the studies were analyzed using the framework analysis method in MAXQDA software. A total of 47 applications were found for telemedicine in primary health care in critical situations, which were classified into 6 areas including teleconsultation, e-learning, remote monitoring, source of medical information, decision support, and patient self-management. The most common medical applications were remote visits, patient consultation, patient education at home, provider screening, self-management of COVID-19 disease, and psychological and social support for patients. Telemedicine technology enables the control and management of crises that arise in health and treatment fields. By improving access, promoting interaction between specialists in urban and rural areas, reducing costs, and reducing mortality and disability, telemedicine provides socioeconomic benefits to patients, providers, and the health care system.