J Korean Med Sci.  2021 May;36(17):e103. 10.3346/jkms.2021.36.e103.

Towards Telemedicine Adoption in Korea: 10 Practical Recommendations for Physicians

Affiliations
  • 1Department of Medical Informatics, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea
  • 2Division of Endocrinology and Metabolism, Department of Internal Medicine, Seoul St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Korea

Abstract

Due to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak, consultation and prescription via telemedicine were temporarily allowed in the Korean population. However, at this point, it is difficult to determine whether telemedicine fulfills its role as a health care strategy. Arguably, if we had enough previous experience with telemedicine or sufficient preparation for its application, telemedicine could be more smoothly and flexibly adopted in the medical field. As it is still not possible to predict when the COVID-19 pandemic will end, phone consultation and prescription are likely to continue for some time. Hence, it is expected that telemedicine will naturally settle in the medical field in the near future. However, as we have noticed during this outbreak, improvised telemedicine without adequate guidance can be confusing to both patients and health professionals, thus reducing the benefit to patients. Medical staff requires preparation on how to appropriately use telemedicine. Thus, here we present some suggestions on implementing and preparing for telemedicine in the medical community.

Keyword

COVID-19; Delivery of Health Care; Information Science; Telecommunications; Telemedicine

Figure

  • Fig. 1 Examples of critical pathways for telemedicine operation. It is possible to change the target disease at the judgment of the researcher. (A) Long-term plan example. To initiate telemedicine, the patient must first visit the hospital. It is also advisable to schedule regular hospital visits depending on the type of disease (e.g., every 3 months). During periods of non-hospital visits, telemedicine checks the patients condition. (e.g., every month). Telemonitoring checks the patient's condition, and if the condition is unstable, stop telemonitoring at any time and switch to face-to-face treatment. Data uploaded by patients can be evaluated and analyzed weekly according to the patient's condition, not monthly. In all these cases, face-to-face treatment should not be stopped entirely. (B) First month's detailed example. When a patient visits the hospital for the first time, medical staff should perform various tests to see if it is suitable for telemonitoring. After that, the data posted by the patient every week are checked. In this case, there are various details such as vital signs or weight.


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