The increase in teleoncology during the COVID-19 pandemic saved patients time and money and reduced carbon emissions, according to research presented at the 2021 ASCO Quality Care Symposium.

Researchers evaluated perceptions of teleoncology among patients enrolled in the Veterans Health Administration. They developed Likert-type surveys for patients who participated in one or more virtual visits for medical, surgical, or radiation oncology between March and June 2020. Follow-up surveys were conducted for those who received care between August 2020 and January 2021.

One hundred surveys were completed (62% response rate). Respondents were predominantly white and male and sought treatment for a variety of cancers. Results indicated that 83% were satisfied with teleoncology, but 47% were less satisfied than with in-person visits.

The audiovisual component in telehealth made patients feel involved in their care (two-sided, P=.0254), as well as improved their perceived ability to self-manage their health (P=.0167). Audiovisual capability also improved patient perception of teleoncology’s comparability to in-person visits (P=.0223).

Follow-up surveys produced similar results.

“Veterans are broadly satisfied with teleoncology,” authors wrote. “Audiovisual capabilities are critical to satisfaction. This is challenging for rural populations with lack of technology access.”

Study authors noted that a third of 9 million veterans enrolled in the VHA live in rural areas, and understanding veterans’ perceptions is necessary to optimize teleoncology and avoid exacerbating health disparities between rural and urban areas.

Survey results also indicated that travel-related savings totaled 86,470 miles, 84,374 minutes, $49,720, and 35.5 metric tons of carbon dioxide.

“Patients experienced financial and time savings, and society benefitted from reduced carbon emissions,” authors concluded. “Continued optimization [is] needed to enhance patient experience and address secondary effects.”

Reference:
Jiang C, Strohbehn GW, Dedinsky R, et al. Assessment of patient satisfaction, financial, and environmental impacts of teleoncology. J Clin Oncol. 2021;39(suppl 28; abstr 278). doi: 10.1200/JCO.2020.39.28_suppl.278