Open AccessTele-health during COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown in Pakistan -Experience of a Tertiary Care Hospital
Author(s) -
Noureen Durrani,
Faridah Amin,
Kiran Akhtar,
Mehreen Raza,
Noman Ali,
Maaha Usmani
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
liaquat national journal of primary care
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 2708-9134
pISSN - 2707-3521
DOI - 10.37184/lnjpc.2707-3521.1.26
Subject(s) - pandemic , medicine , telemedicine , audit , referral , health care , covid-19 , family medicine , tertiary referral hospital , population , telehealth , medical emergency , emergency medicine , disease , retrospective cohort study , infectious disease (medical specialty) , environmental health , management , economics , economic growth , pathology
COVID-19 (Coronavirus Disease 2019) caused by SARS-Cov-2 has quickly multiplied since its outbreak in humans. The utilization of telemedicine came to the fore in this dire situation when it is absolutely necessary to maintain social distancing. This study has been done to highlight the implementation of tele-health program among the general population during COVID-19 pandemic in our setting. Methods:The current study presents the experience of a tertiary care hospital in Pakistan in terms of utilization pattern and patients’ clinical complaints dealt with in Tele-health Program. The Tele-health program was initiated by family medicine department at Liaquat National Hospital, Karachi in collaboration with internal medicine, pulmonary medicine and department of infectious disease. The program was approved by institutional management committee. The current study presents an audit of tele-health calls received during last week of March-2020 till April 2020. The data was obtained from structured clinical consultations notes recorded at the time of receiving patients’ call. Data was analyzed on SPSS version 20.Results:We analyzed data of a total of 459 patients who availed tele-health services during last week of March-2020 till April-2020. The median no. of calls was approximately 12 per day. Almost half of patients were between 18 to 39 years (n= 224, 48.40%). 407 (88.67%) of the consultations were done by initial patients. Total 482 complaints were received including 9 requests for direct referral to specialized clinics. Respiratory complains were most frequently encountered (212, 46.19%). Among the 212 respiratory complaints, 103 (47.64%) were COVID-19 related complaints. Out of 459, only 7 (1.5%) were severe enough to be advised to visit hospital.Conclusion:It is very crucial to provide timely essential quality primary care services during a lockdown situation to avoid delay in healthcare, avoid complications due to delay and hence exhausting resources after the lockdown. Telemedicine can provide the bridging solution, enabling people to access judicious healthcare from the comfort of their homes.