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ObjectivesTelemedicine is the use of telecommunication to provide healthcare remotely. We sought to quantify time/cost savings and satisfaction between a cohort of telemedicine and inperson visits in a tertiary paediatric orthopaedic clinic. MethodsTime for clinical visits and wait times were compared between telemedicine and inperson visits. Costs to patients and department were also calculated for both visit types. Parents completed a five-item satisfaction survey regarding their telemedicine experience. ResultsVisit times (15 vs 68 min, P<0. 001) and wait times (2 vs 33 min, P<0. 001) were shorter for telemedicine visits. Families saved 85 miles of driving and 50 in costs per telemedicine visit. Labour cost saved for a telemedicine visit was 24/patient. More than 90% of patients were satisfied with the telemedicine service. ConclusionTelemedicine can be used in a sports medicine setting to provide care that reduces costs while maintaining high levels of patient satisfaction. Level of evidenceLevel III. Telemedicine is the use of telecommunication to provide healthcare remotely. We sought to quantify time/cost savings and satisfaction between a cohort of telemedicine and inperson visits in a tertiary paediatric orthopaedic clinic. Time for clinical visits and wait times were compared between telemedicine and inperson visits. Costs to patients and department were also calculated for both visit types. Parents completed a five-item satisfaction survey regarding their telemedicine experience. Visit times (15 vs 68 min, P<0. 001) and wait times (2 vs 33 min, P<0. 001) were shorter for telemedicine visits. Families saved 85 miles of driving and 50 in costs per telemedicine visit. Labour cost saved for a telemedicine visit was 24/patient. More than 90% of patients were satisfied with the telemedicine service. Telemedicine can be used in a sports medicine setting to provide care that reduces costs while maintaining high levels of patient satisfaction.
Atanda et al. (Thu,) studied this question.