The Virtual Doctor Is In: The Effect of Telehealth Visits on Patient Experience

Abstract

COVID-19 has accelerated the adoption of telehealth. With this shift comes a need for empirically based research regarding the effect of telehealth on patient experience. The present study employed an online survey (N = 996) examining whether a patient's perceptions of a telehealth visit predict the likelihood that they will schedule a future telehealth visit, and their recall of clinical information. Participants viewed a video of a real clinician delivering information on a COVID-19 antibody test, and responded to demographic, socioemotional, and cognitive items. We found that individuals who were extremely satisfied with their interaction with the doctor, for every 1-point increase in satisfaction, they were 72.5% times more likely to revisit the doctor (p < .01). These results also provide insight to researchers and medical professionals regarding patient perceptions of virtual encounters and suggest best practices to consider as we further integrate telehealth.