Patient satisfaction and trust in telemedicine during the COVID-19 pandemic: Retrospective observational study

Abstract

Background: Los Angeles County is a hub for COVID-19 cases in the United States. Academic health centers rapidly deployed and leveraged telemedicine to permit uninterrupted care of patients. Telemedicine enjoys high patient satisfaction, yet little is known about the level of satisfaction during a crisis and to what extent patient- or visit-related factors and trust play when in-person visits are eliminated. Objective: The aim of this study is to examine correlates of patients’ satisfaction with a telemedicine visit. Methods: In this retrospective observational study conducted in our single-institution, urban, academic medical center in Los Angeles, internal medicine patients aged ≥18 years who completed a telemedicine visit between March 10th and April 17th, 2020, were invited for a survey (n=1624). Measures included patient demographics, degree of interpersonal trust in patient-physician relationships (using the Trust in Physician Scale), and visit-related concerns. Statistical analysis used descriptive statistics, Spearman rank-order correlation, and linear and ordinal logistic regression. Results: Of 1624 telemedicine visits conducted during this period, 368 (22.7%) patients participated in the survey. Across the study, respondents were very satisfied (173/365, 47.4%) or satisfied (n=129, 35.3%) with their telemedicine visit. Higher physician trust was associated with higher patient satisfaction (Spearman correlation r=0.51, P