<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<sec><h3>Introduction</h3>
<p>Patients with haemophilia require regular assessments and physical examinations. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the rapid adoption of telemedicine to enable virtual consultations and reduce hospital visits. However, the process of virtual consultations is new to many haemophilia clinics. A better understanding of best practices in telemedicine is important to ensure optimal quality of care for patients with haemophilia.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Objectives</h3>
<p>To summarise the current literature on the use of direct-to-consumer telemedicine for patients with haemophilia and to describe the effectiveness and potential limitations of the technology and methods used.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Methods</h3>
<p>A comprehensive search was conducted in MEDLINE and EMBASE databases using terms referring to the concepts “haemophilia” AND “telemedicine” and their synonyms. There were no time or language restrictions. Title, abstracts, and full texts were screened. Included articles involved telemedicine interventions to facilitate clinical services directly between patients and providers without the use of third-party personnel. The primary outcome was the satisfaction of providers and patients. Secondary outcomes included economic considerations and clinical outcomes. Information was extracted based on study-specific, patient-specific, intervention-specific, and outcome-specific data.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Results</h3>
<p>Of the 925 articles screened, six were identified and summarised. Three described telemedicine within the context of COVID-19. Technologies used included telephone calls, videoconferencing, text messaging, and email. All studies involved a multidisciplinary team. Telemedicine in haemophilia care was found to positively impact the patient experience. Providers were satisfied with telemedicine. It was also suggested to be economically beneficial and positively impacted patient outcomes. However, none of the articles reported on how telemedicine was specifically used to perform assessments during the virtual consultation process.</p>
</sec>
<sec><h3>Conclusions</h3>
<p>There is preliminary evidence that telemedicine may be beneficial in haemophilia care. Overall, patients and providers reported high satisfaction with the usage of direct-to-consumer telemedicine. This positive reception warrants improvements in standardisation of reporting and quality of study design to better assess its clinical and economic impact. Developing a standard guideline for virtual consultations would support healthcare practitioners in how to best incorporate telemedicine to improve quality of care.</p>
</sec>
</abstract>

Introduction
Patients with haemophilia require regular assessments and physical examinations. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the rapid adoption of telemedicine to enable virtual consultations and reduce hospital visits. However, the process of virtual consultations is new to many haemophilia clinics. A better understanding of best practices in telemedicine is important to ensure optimal quality of care for patients with haemophilia.

Objectives
To summarise the current literature on the use of direct-to-consumer telemedicine for patients with haemophilia and to describe the effectiveness and potential limitations of the technology and methods used.

Methods
A comprehensive search was conducted in MEDLINE and EMBASE databases using terms referring to the concepts “haemophilia” AND “telemedicine” and their synonyms. There were no time or language restrictions. Title, abstracts, and full texts were screened. Included articles involved telemedicine interventions to facilitate clinical services directly between patients and providers without the use of third-party personnel. The primary outcome was the satisfaction of providers and patients. Secondary outcomes included economic considerations and clinical outcomes. Information was extracted based on study-specific, patient-specific, intervention-specific, and outcome-specific data.

Results
Of the 925 articles screened, six were identified and summarised. Three described telemedicine within the context of COVID-19. Technologies used included telephone calls, videoconferencing, text messaging, and email. All studies involved a multidisciplinary team. Telemedicine in haemophilia care was found to positively impact the patient experience. Providers were satisfied with telemedicine. It was also suggested to be economically beneficial and positively impacted patient outcomes. However, none of the articles reported on how telemedicine was specifically used to perform assessments during the virtual consultation process.

Conclusions
There is preliminary evidence that telemedicine may be beneficial in haemophilia care. Overall, patients and providers reported high satisfaction with the usage of direct-to-consumer telemedicine. This positive reception warrants improvements in standardisation of reporting and quality of study design to better assess its clinical and economic impact. Developing a standard guideline for virtual consultations would support healthcare practitioners in how to best incorporate telemedicine to improve quality of care.

Telemedicine in haemophilia during COVID-19 and beyond: a comprehensive review

Department of Paediatrics and Adolescent Medicine

School of Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences

The Journal of Haemophilia Practice

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

{"article-title":"Telemedicine in haemophilia during COVID-19 and beyond: a comprehensive review"}

Introduction
Patients with haemophilia require regular assessments and physical examinations. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in the rapid adoption of...

Telemedicine in haemophilia during COVID-19 and beyond: a comprehensive review

Article Category: Clinical Practice

Publié en ligne: 14 oct. 2021

Pages: 98 - 110

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jhp-2021-0011

Mots clés
Telemedicine, haemophilia, COVID-19, consultation, technology

© 2021 Casey L Li et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Telemedicine in haemophilia during COVID-19 and beyond: a comprehensive review

Article Category: Clinical Practice

Publié en ligne: 14 oct. 2021

Pages: 98 - 110

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/jhp-2021-0011

Mots clésTelemedicine, haemophilia, COVID-19, consultation, technology

© 2021 Casey L Li et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Mots clés
Telemedicine, haemophilia, COVID-19, consultation, technology