JMIR Publications

ABSTRACT

Background:

Supplementing outpatient medical care with the use of video consultations could, among other benefits, improve access, especially in structurally disadvantaged areas.

Objective:

This claims data analysis, carried out as part of the German research project "Preference-based use of video consultation in urban and rural regions", aims to analyze the use of video consultations and the characteristics of its user groups.

Methods:

Claims data from three Statutory Health Insurance Funds (SHIFs) and four Associations of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (ASHIPs) from the period April 2017 to the end of 2020 were used. A sample of around six million insured and 33,100 physicians / psychotherapists was analyzed. In addition to data on the use of video consultations, patient data on sociodemographic characteristics, diagnoses and place of residence were included. To analyze the physicians’ perspective, specialty groups, demographic characteristics and the type of practice location were also included. Descriptive analyses were performed according to different subgroups.

Results:

From 2017 to 2019, video consultations had almost no relevance in outpatient care in the German health care system. Although this changed significantly with the start of the Covid 19 pandemic, there was also a clear decline in the use of video consultations as the number of infections flattened out. Video consultations are mainly used in psychotherapeutic care. Younger age groups and those located in urban areas use video consultations more frequently; this applies to both patients and service providers.

Conclusions:

The widespread and lasting use of video consultations will only succeed if the potential user groups accept this form of service provision and recognize its advantages. Further analyses should therefore investigate the preferences of user groups for the use of video consultations.