Citation
Si, Yafei; Xue, Hao; Liao, Huipeng; Xie, Yewei; Xu, Dong Roman; Smith, Kumi; Yip, Winnie; Cheng, Weibin; Tian, Junzhang; & Tang, Weiming, et al. (Online ahead of print). The Quality of Telemedicine Consultations for Sexually Transmitted Infections in China. Health Policy and Planning.Abstract
The burden of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) continues to increase in developing countries like China, but the access to STI care is often limited. The emergence of direct-to-consumer (DTC) telemedicine offers unique opportunities for patients to directly access health services when needed; However, the quality of STI care provided by telemedicine platforms remains unknown. After systemically identifying the universe of DTC telemedicine platforms providing on-demand consultations in China in 2019, we evaluated their quality using the method of unannounced standardized patients (SPs). SPs presented routine cases of syphilis and herpes. Of 110 SP visits conducted, physicians made a correct diagnosis in 44.5% (95% CI: 35.1% to 54.0%) of SP visits, and correctly managed 10.9% (95% CI: 5.0% to 16.8%). Low rates of correct management were primarily attributable to the failure of physicians to refer patients for STI testing. Controlling for other factors, videoconference (vs. SMS-based) consultation mode and the availability of public physician ratings were associated with higher-quality care. Our findings suggest a need for further research on the causal determinants of care quality on DTC telemedicine platforms and effective policy approaches to promote their potential to expand access to STI care in developing countries while limiting potential unintended consequences for patients.URL
http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/heapol/czad119Reference Type
Journal ArticleYear Published
Online ahead of printJournal Title
Health Policy and PlanningAuthor(s)
Si, YafeiXue, Hao
Liao, Huipeng
Xie, Yewei
Xu, Dong Roman
Smith, Kumi
Yip, Winnie
Cheng, Weibin
Tian, Junzhang
Tang, Weiming
Sylvia, Sean