RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Virtual care in ontario community health centres: A Cross-Sectional study to understand changes in care delivery
JF BJGP Open
JO BJGP Open
FD Royal College of General Practitioners
SP BJGPO.2021.0239
DO 10.3399/BJGPO.2021.0239
A1 Bhatti, Sara
A1 Dahrouge, Simone
A1 Muldoon, Laura
A1 Rayner, Jennifer
YR 2022
UL http://bjgpopen.org/content/early/2022/02/25/BJGPO.2021.0239.abstract
AB Background Virtual delivery of primary care has seen a massive adoption as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.Aim In this descriptive study, we use an equity lens to explore the impact of transitioning to greater use of virtual care in community health centres (CHCs) across Ontario, Canada.Design & setting We administered a cross-sectional survey and extracted electronic medical record (EMR) data from thirty-six CHCs.Method The survey captured CHC’s experience with the increased adoption of virtual care. A longitudinal analysis of the EMR data was conducted to evaluate changes in health service delivery. EMR data was extracted monthly for a period of time prior to the pandemic (April 2019 - February 2020) and during (April 2020 – February 2021).Results In comparison to the pre-pandemic period, CHCs experienced a moderate decline in visits made (11%), patients seen (9%), issues addressed (9%), and services provided (15%). During the pandemic period, an average of 54% of visits were conducted virtually with phone as the leading virtual modality (96%). Drops in service types ranged from 82% to 28%. The distribution of virtual modalities varied according to the provider type. Access to in-person and virtual care did not vary across patient characteristics.Conclusion Our results demonstrate a large shift towards virtual delivery while maintaining in-person care. We found no meaningful differences in virtual versus in-person care related to patient characteristics or rurality of centres. Future studies are needed to explore how to best select the appropriate modality for patients and service types.