Primary care utilization among telehealth users and non-users at a large urban public healthcare system.

ABSTRACT: Telehealth services may improve access to care, but there are concerns around whether availability of telehealth may increase care utilization. We assessed whether usage of telehealth was associated with differential primary care utilization at a large, urban public healthcare system. Using electronic health record data from 23 primary care clinics, we categorized patients as telehealth users and non-users. Then, we compared the number of visits per patient between groups using Welch's t-tests while stratifying by comorbidity count. We used multivariable Poisson regression to test for associations between telehealth usage and visit count while controlling for other demographic factors. Compared with telehealth non-users, telehealth users had approximately 1 more primary care visit per pati

SUBMITTER: Chen K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9355262 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature