A newly released study shows surgeons' use of telehealth rose across all surgical specialties early in the pandemic. While rates declined as in-person care resumed, they remained above pre-pandemic levels.
The study analyzed insurance claims from 4,405 Michigan surgeons from Jan. 5, 2020, to Sept. 5, 2020. Compared with 2019 visit volume, telehealth only salvaged a small portion of 2020 surgical visits.
Here are five takeaways:
- Among the surgeons, 58.8 percent performed telehealth in any patient context, and 26.8 percent used telehealth for new patient visits.
- Telehealth use peaked in the week of April 12 and made up 34.6 percent of all new patient visits.
- From March 8 to June 6, 16.6 percent of all new patient surgical visits were conducted via telehealth, compared to 5.1 percent in 2019 during the same period.
- From June 7 to Sept. 5, only 3 percent of new patient surgical visits were conducted virtually, compared to 2.5 percent in 2019 during the same period.
- Prior to March 2020, less than 1 percent of new patient visits were conducted through telehealth.