Currently accepted at: Journal of Medical Internet Research
Date Submitted: Jul 23, 2025
Open Peer Review Period: Jul 24, 2025 - Sep 18, 2025
Date Accepted: Mar 2, 2026
(closed for review but you can still tweet)
This paper has been accepted and is currently in production.
It will appear shortly on 10.2196/81173
The final accepted version (not copyedited yet) is in this tab.
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
A mixed methods study exploring the use of virtual consultations in general practice and community care: views of people with intellectual disabilities, their families and healthcare professionals
ABSTRACT
Background:
Virtual consultations using video or telephone were embraced at speed in general practice and community care during the COVID-19 pandemic. People with intellectual disabilities, their families and support workers, along with healthcare professionals, had to adapt quickly to this change in provision, but little is known about how this new way of working was experienced.
Objective:
To explore the views and experiences of people with intellectual disabilities, their families, support workers and general practice/ community care professionals on the quality and safety of virtual consultations.
Methods:
This paper reports on users' experiences of virtual consultations, as part of a larger Experience-based Co-design (EBCD) study. This paper relates to the observation of video consultations in general practice/community care (n=3), semi-structured interviews with people with intellectual disabilities, their family members/support workers and general practice and community care professionals (n=34). Data were analysed using Framework Analysis. Integrated data informed the design and content of best practice guidance and resources to support virtual consultation use.
Results:
Integrated results are presented through five themes, encompassed under an overarching theme of safety and quality. The five themes highlight critical factors in planning, delivery and aftercare of virtual consultations in general practice and community services for people with intellectual disabilities in the UK: 1) Context, space & purpose; 2) Choice; 3) Familiarity, online relationships and trust; 4) Prepare and personalise; and 5) Continue connection. Participants were aware of the limitations of VC, which may impact safety, but were also aware of the distinct benefits they offer in terms of quality provision, such as timeliness to care, building and sustaining comfortable relationships and ensuring continuous connection to health teams.
Conclusions:
Virtual consultations offer an opportunity to improve digital inclusion in healthcare for people with intellectual disabilities. However, the quality and safety of virtual consultations for this population are dependent on continuous review of patients' needs, ensuring their choices and preferences are considered when planning and providing care.
Citation
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Copyright
© The authors. All rights reserved. This is a privileged document currently under peer-review/community review (or an accepted/rejected manuscript). Authors have provided JMIR Publications with an exclusive license to publish this preprint on it's website for review and ahead-of-print citation purposes only. While the final peer-reviewed paper may be licensed under a cc-by license on publication, at this stage authors and publisher expressively prohibit redistribution of this draft paper other than for review purposes.