‘Nothing beats the doctor’s face to impart trust in their judgement’: the role of telehealth in cancer care
Neli S. Slavova-Azmanova A B , Lesley Millar A , Angela Ives A and Christobel M. Saunders AA UWA Medical School, The University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia. Email: lesley.millar@uwa.edu.au; angela.ives@uwa.edu.au; christobel.saunders@uwa.edu.au
B Corresponding author. Email: neli.slavova-azmanova@uwa.edu.au
Australian Health Review 45(4) 521-522 https://doi.org/10.1071/AH20314
Submitted: 1 November 2020 Accepted: 29 December 2020 Published: 15 February 2021
Journal Compilation © AHHA 2021 Open Access CC BY
Abstract
Despite Western Australia having low COVID-19 case numbers and limited community transmission, cancer service delivery changes were introduced early in the pandemic, including adoption of telehealth. Patients attending telehealth appointments during COVID-19 between 11 May 2020 and 7 August 2020 reported that telehealth lessened their concerns and met their needs to varying degrees. Despite this, 56% of patients still preferred in-person appointments.
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