Profile of patients attending telepsychiatry unit and its usability and satisfaction during pandemic in South India - A retrospective study

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic is an unexpected event that has led to a drastic shift in the practice of medicine around the world. Currently, not many studies are available in India regarding the role of telepsychiatry and no study has been done to assess the usability and satisfaction scores of patients who undergo a telepsychiatric consultation. Aim: The aim of the study is to find the profile of patients attending the telepsychiatry Unit and its usability and satisfaction during the pandemic in South India. Setting and Design: The study was conducted on patients attending telepsychiatric consultation from a period of March 25, 2020, to September 2020. Materials and Methods: A retrospective chart analysis of patients attending telepsychiatry consultation from March 25, 2020, to September 2020 was made. Patients who underwent video consultation were asked to fill out the telehealth usability questionnaire scale through Google Forms. The usability of the telehealth system was assessed using a Likert Scale and scoring was done. Statistical Analysis: Descriptive statistics were used to characterize the study population. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. The design and findings of this study were written in accordance with SQUIRE 2.0 guidelines. Results: Twenty-two percent of the study population had consultation for more than fourtimes. Around 78% of the study population had online consultation for less than four times. More than 74% of the study population had video consultation and 26% of the study population had audio consultation. The total average Telehealth Usability Questionaire score was 5.3. The usefulness score summary was found to have a low score of 5.2 ± 0.6, whereas the satisfaction scale summary was found to have the highest score of 5.3 + 0.9. Conclusion: Profile of patients who attend a telepsychiatry unit during the crisis and their satisfaction helped us to know the pros and cons of online consultation and the ways to improve telemedicine in regard to psychiatric patient care. Our study shows that majority are satisfied with telepsychiatric consultation.