The Internet Hospital Plus Drug Delivery Platform for Health Management During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Observational Study

Autor: Zitong Chen, Liang Ding, Yujin Li, Meifang Jiang, Qiuru She, Chaofeng Liao, Fengxian Chen, Huasi Huang
Rok vydání: 2020
Předmět:
Adult
Male
China
Adolescent
020205 medical informatics
Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)
Pneumonia
Viral
Transportation
Health Informatics
internet hospital
02 engineering and technology
lcsh:Computer applications to medicine. Medical informatics
Drug Prescriptions
Disease Outbreaks
Tertiary Care Centers
Young Adult
03 medical and health sciences
0302 clinical medicine
Pandemic
health management
0202 electrical engineering
electronic engineering
information engineering
Humans
Medicine
030212 general & internal medicine
Young adult
Medical prescription
IHDD
Pandemics
Original Paper
Internet
Health management system
business.industry
lcsh:Public aspects of medicine
COVID-19
lcsh:RA1-1270
Middle Aged
medicine.disease
Telemedicine
drug delivery
internet hospital plus drug delivery
lcsh:R858-859.7
Female
The Internet
Observational study
Residence
Medical emergency
Coronavirus Infections
business
Zdroj: Journal of Medical Internet Research, Vol 22, Iss 8, p e19678 (2020)
Journal of Medical Internet Research
ISSN: 1438-8871
Popis: Background Widespread access to the internet has boosted the emergence of online hospitals. A new outpatient service called “internet hospital plus drug delivery” (IHDD) has been developed in China, but little is known about this platform. Objective The aim of this study is to investigate the characteristics, acceptance, and initial impact of IHDD during the outbreak of COVID-19 in a tertiary hospital in South China Methods The total number of and detailed information on online prescriptions during the first 2 months after work resumption were obtained. Patients’ gender, age, residence, associated prescription department, time of prescription, payment, and drug delivery region were included in the analysis. Results A total of 1380 prescriptions were picked up or delivered between March 2 and April 20, 2020. The largest group of patients were 36-59 years old (n=680, 49.3%), followed by the 18-35 years age category (n=573, 41.5%). In total, 39.4% (n=544) of the patients chose to get their medicine by self-pickup, while 60.6% (n=836) preferred to receive their medicine via drug delivery service. The top five online prescription departments were infectious diseases (n=572, 41.4%), nephrology (n=264, 19.1%), endocrinology (n=145, 10.5%), angiocardiopathy (n=107, 7.8%), and neurology (n=42, 3%). Of the 836 delivered prescriptions, 440 (52.6%) were sent to Guangdong Province (including 363 [43.4%] to Shenzhen), and 396 (47.4%) were sent to other provinces in China. Conclusions The IHDD platform is efficient and convenient for various types of patients during the COVID-19 crisis. Although offline visits are essential for patients with severe conditions, IHDD can help to relieve pressure on hospitals by reducing an influx of patients with mild symptoms. Further efforts need to be made to improve the quality and acceptance of IHDD, as well as to regulate and standardize the management of this novel service.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
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