Perceptions and Use of Telehealth Among Mental Health, Primary, and Specialty Care Clinicians During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Source:

Connolly SL, Miller CJ, Gifford AL, Charness ME. Perceptions and Use of Telehealth Among Mental Health, Primary, and Specialty Care Clinicians During the COVID-19 Pandemic. JAMA Netw Open. 2022;5(6):e2216401. doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2022.16401

Key Points

Question  Are clinician perceptions of telehealth quality associated with use?

Findings  In this survey study of 866 mental health (MH), primary care (PC), and specialty care (SC) clinicians, MH clinicians rated the quality of video care the highest and were more likely to prefer video over phone when providing care for patients remotely; PC and SC clinicians were more likely to endorse challenges of video care. Findings aligned with utilization rates, with MH clinicians conducting significantly more video visits than PC and SC clinicians.

Meaning  These findings suggest that specialty-specific differences in clinician perceptions of telehealth were associated with actual use.