Pandemic Telemedicine Provided Access to Multispecialty Care for Patients With MS

Up to 57% of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) prefer telemedicine over in-person visits for some, most, or all their MS care, according to study results published in Telemedicine and e-Health.

“Because people with MS are often separated from specialty care by distance or disability, telemedicine can help alleviate that burden by removing obstacles to accessing care,” wrote corresponding author Louise Sumner, MPH, of Gryphon Scientific in Takoma Park, MD, and coauthors.

For the study, researchers surveyed 762 patients with MS from the iConquerMS research network about their use of in-person and telemedicine services before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. The before period focused on January 2020 and February 2020; the pandemic period focused on September 2020 through November 2020.

The most common reason for not using telemedicine before the pandemic was providers not offering it, the survey data showed. During the pandemic period, in-person care decreased between 78% and 100%, while telemedicine-based care increased between 25% and 80%, participants reported.

Most patients had access to the technology needed for telemedicine, and 41% to 57% of patients said they preferred it for some, most, or all their MS care, according to the study.

Use of telemedicine occurred most often for primary care before the pandemic, researchers reported. During the pandemic, it was used most for general MS care, although an increase in telemedicine encounters for mental health also occurred.

“The dramatic increase in telemedicine utilization during the COVID-19 pandemic has provided access for people with MS to multispecialty care,” researchers wrote. “Maintaining the policy changes that enabled remote health care to expand during the pandemic will be critical for sustained access to MS specialty care for this vulnerable population.”

Reference:
Sumner L, Schmidt H, Minden S, et al. Use of telemedicine among people with multiple sclerosis before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Telemed J E Health. Published online December 9, 2022. doi:10.1089/tmj.2022.0284