The value of physical examination in the era of telemedicine

Abstract

Telemedicine use has expanded rapidly to cope with increasing demand on services by delivering remote clinical review and monitoring of long-term conditions. Triaging individual patients to determine their suitability for telephone, video or face-to-face consultations is necessary. This is crucial in the context of COVID-19 to ensure doctor-patient safety. Telemedicine was shown to be safe and feasible in managing certain chronic diseases and providing patient education. When reviewing newly referred or long-term patients, different specialty clinics have different requirements for physical examination. Clinicians prefer face-to-face consultations at the initial visit to establish a doctor-patient relationship; telephone or video consultations are reasonable options for long-term patients where physical examination may not be needed. Video consultations, often aided by sophisticated devices and apps or medical assistants, are useful to facilitate remote physical examination. Most patients prefer telemedicine as it saves time and travel cost and provides better access to appointments.