Rural Telemedicine Use Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Repeated Cross-sectional Study.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a notable increase in telemedicine adoption. However, the impact of the pandemic on telemedicine use at a population level in rural and remote settings remains unclear.

Objective

This study aimed to evaluate changes in the rate of telemedicine use among rural populations and identify patient characteristics associated with telemedicine use prior to and during the pandemic.

Methods

We conducted a repeated cross-sectional study on all monthly and quarterly rural telemedicine visits from January 2012 to June 2020, using administrative data from Ontario, Canada. We compared the changes in telemedicine use among residents of rural and urban regions of Ontario prior to and during the pandemic.

Results

Before the pandemic, t

SUBMITTER: Chu C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8023379 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature