Abstract
BackgroundQuestionnaires are commonly used tools in telemedicine services that can help to evaluate different aspects. Selecting the ideal questionnaire for this purpose may be challenging for researchers. This study aims to review which questionnaires are used to evaluate telemedicine services in the studies, which are most common, and what aspects of telemedicine evaluation do they capture.MethodsThe PubMed database was searched in August 2020 to retrieve articles. Data extracted from the final list of articles included author/year of publication, journal of publication, type of evaluation, and evaluation questionnaire. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics.ResultsFifty-three articles were included in this study. The questionnaire was used for evaluating the satisfaction (49%), usability (34%), acceptance (11.5%), and implementation (2%) of telemedicine services. Among telemedicine specific questionnaires, Telehealth Usability Questionnaire (TUQ) (19%), Telemedicine Satisfaction Questionnaire (TSQ) (13%), and Service User Technology Acceptability Questionnaire (SUTAQ) (5.5%), were respectively most frequently used in the collected articles. Other most used questionnaires generally used for evaluating the users’ satisfaction, usability, and acceptance of technology were Client Satisfaction Questionnaire (CSQ) (5.5%), Questionnaire for User Interaction Satisfaction (QUIS) (5.5%), System Usability Scale (SUS) (5.5%), Patient Satisfaction Questionnaire (PSQ) (5.5%), and Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) (3.5%) respectively.ConclusionEmploying specifically designed questionnaires or designing a new questionnaire with fewer questions and more comprehensiveness in terms of the issues studied provides a better evaluation. Attention to user needs, end-user acceptance, and implementation processes, along with users' satisfaction and usability evaluation, may optimize telemedicine efforts in the future.
Highlights
Questionnaires are commonly used tools in telemedicine services that can help to evaluate differ‐ ent aspects
In order to choose the right evaluation method, several issues should be considered: (1) Considering project goals; (2) determining the required amount of budget, energy, and time for evaluation; (3) selecting the appropriate method based on the predetermined criteria and metrics; (4) using understandable and easy evaluation methods for users; (5) being completely aware of the evaluation method used in the study; and (6) using validated methods for the evaluation process [5]
Journal of publication Nine articles were published in the Telemedicine and e-health Journal (17%), six in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (11.5%), four in the International Journal of Telerehabilitation (7.5%), four in the Journal
Summary
Questionnaires are commonly used tools in telemedicine services that can help to evaluate differ‐ ent aspects. Telemedicine provides healthcare services when patients and healthcare providers are at different locations using Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). The core purpose of telemedicine is to improve the health of individuals and communities by exchanging useful. Evaluation is the use of systematic and logical methods to assess the attributes of different aspects of the project, including its design, implementation, operation, and outcome [4]. Hajesmaeel‐Gohari and Bahaadinbeigy BMC Med Inform Decis Mak (2021) 21:36 evaluation process should be done independently and systematically on various features as the feasibility of the project, acceptance by participants, availability of service, technical capabilities of participants, clinical outcomes, user satisfaction, quality, and the cost–benefit of the offered service [3]. There are several methods to evaluate different aspects of a telemedicine project. In order to choose the right evaluation method, several issues should be considered: (1) Considering project goals; (2) determining the required amount of budget, energy, and time for evaluation; (3) selecting the appropriate method based on the predetermined criteria and metrics; (4) using understandable and easy evaluation methods for users; (5) being completely aware of the evaluation method used in the study; and (6) using validated methods for the evaluation process [5]
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