Short- and intermediate-term impact of DTC telemedicine consultations on subsequent healthcare consumption
Dahlgren, Cecilia ; Spånberg, Emma ; Sveréus, Sofia ; Dackehag, Margareta LU
; Wändell, Per
and Rehnberg, Clas
(2023)
In European Journal of Health Economics
- Abstract
Aim: The use of direct-to-consumer (DTC) telemedicine consultations in primary healthcare has increased rapidly, in Sweden and internationally. Such consultations may be a low-cost alternative to face-to-face visits, but there is limited evidence on their effects on overall healthcare consumption. The aim of this study was to assess the short- and intermediate-term impact of DTC telemedicine consultations on subsequent primary healthcare consumption, by comparing DTC telemedicine users to matched controls in a Swedish setting. Methods: We constructed a database with individual-level data on healthcare consumption, for all residents of Region Stockholm in 2018, by linking national and regional registries. The study population included... (More)
Aim: The use of direct-to-consumer (DTC) telemedicine consultations in primary healthcare has increased rapidly, in Sweden and internationally. Such consultations may be a low-cost alternative to face-to-face visits, but there is limited evidence on their effects on overall healthcare consumption. The aim of this study was to assess the short- and intermediate-term impact of DTC telemedicine consultations on subsequent primary healthcare consumption, by comparing DTC telemedicine users to matched controls in a Swedish setting. Methods: We constructed a database with individual-level data on healthcare consumption, for all residents of Region Stockholm in 2018, by linking national and regional registries. The study population included all individuals who had ≥ 1 physician consultation (telemedicine or face-to-face) during the first half of 2018. DTC telemedicine users were matched 1:2 to controls who were non-users of DTC telemedicine but who had a traditional face-to-face consultation during the study period. The matching criteria were diagnosis and demographic and socioeconomic variables. An interrupted time series analysis was performed to compare the healthcare consumption of DTC telemedicine users to that of the control group. Results: DTC telemedicine users increased their healthcare consumption more than controls. The effect seemed to be mostly short term (within a month), but was also present at the intermediate term (2–6 months after the initial consultation). The results were robust across age and disease groups. Conclusion: The results indicate that DTC telemedicine consultations increase the total number of physician consultations in primary healthcare. From a policy perspective, it is therefore important to further investigate for which diagnoses and treatments DTC telemedicine is suitable so that its use can be encouraged when it is most cost-efficient and limited when it is not. Given the fundamentally different models for reimbursement, there are reasons to review and possibly harmonise the incentive structures for DTC telemedicine and traditional primary healthcare.
(Less)
- author
- Dahlgren, Cecilia
; Spånberg, Emma
; Sveréus, Sofia
; Dackehag, Margareta
LU
; Wändell, Per
and Rehnberg, Clas
- organization
- publishing date
- 2023
- type
- Contribution to journal
- publication status
- epub
- subject
- keywords
- e-health, Healthcare consumption, Interrupted time series analysis, Primary healthcare, Sweden, Telemedicine
- in
- European Journal of Health Economics
- publisher
- Springer
- external identifiers
-
- pmid:36823408
- scopus:85148622782
- ISSN
- 1618-7598
- DOI
- 10.1007/s10198-023-01572-z
- language
- English
- LU publication?
- yes
- id
- e66a17ab-24df-4aa2-a250-10f8e7e08685
- date added to LUP
- 2023-03-13 14:22:33
- date last changed
- 2024-04-04 17:09:51
@article{e66a17ab-24df-4aa2-a250-10f8e7e08685,
abstract = {{<p>Aim: The use of direct-to-consumer (DTC) telemedicine consultations in primary healthcare has increased rapidly, in Sweden and internationally. Such consultations may be a low-cost alternative to face-to-face visits, but there is limited evidence on their effects on overall healthcare consumption. The aim of this study was to assess the short- and intermediate-term impact of DTC telemedicine consultations on subsequent primary healthcare consumption, by comparing DTC telemedicine users to matched controls in a Swedish setting. Methods: We constructed a database with individual-level data on healthcare consumption, for all residents of Region Stockholm in 2018, by linking national and regional registries. The study population included all individuals who had ≥ 1 physician consultation (telemedicine or face-to-face) during the first half of 2018. DTC telemedicine users were matched 1:2 to controls who were non-users of DTC telemedicine but who had a traditional face-to-face consultation during the study period. The matching criteria were diagnosis and demographic and socioeconomic variables. An interrupted time series analysis was performed to compare the healthcare consumption of DTC telemedicine users to that of the control group. Results: DTC telemedicine users increased their healthcare consumption more than controls. The effect seemed to be mostly short term (within a month), but was also present at the intermediate term (2–6 months after the initial consultation). The results were robust across age and disease groups. Conclusion: The results indicate that DTC telemedicine consultations increase the total number of physician consultations in primary healthcare. From a policy perspective, it is therefore important to further investigate for which diagnoses and treatments DTC telemedicine is suitable so that its use can be encouraged when it is most cost-efficient and limited when it is not. Given the fundamentally different models for reimbursement, there are reasons to review and possibly harmonise the incentive structures for DTC telemedicine and traditional primary healthcare.</p>}},
author = {{Dahlgren, Cecilia and Spånberg, Emma and Sveréus, Sofia and Dackehag, Margareta and Wändell, Per and Rehnberg, Clas}},
issn = {{1618-7598}},
keywords = {{e-health; Healthcare consumption; Interrupted time series analysis; Primary healthcare; Sweden; Telemedicine}},
language = {{eng}},
publisher = {{Springer}},
series = {{European Journal of Health Economics}},
title = {{Short- and intermediate-term impact of DTC telemedicine consultations on subsequent healthcare consumption}},
url = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10198-023-01572-z}},
doi = {{10.1007/s10198-023-01572-z}},
year = {{2023}},
}