Willingness to use telemedicine and its influencing factors among medical staff in poor areas
LUO Yang1, LIU Zheng1, ZHAO Wen-long2
1. The First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China; 2. School of Information, Chongqing Medical University, Chongqing 400016, China
Abstract：Objective To explore the willingness to adopt telemedicine and its influencing factors among medical staff in poor areas of Chongqing, and to provide decision-making references for the development of telemedicine services in poor areas and the exploration of health poverty alleviation paths. Methods From May to July 2020, a stratified multi-stage sampling method was used to select medical staff from 7 county-level hospitals and 19 primary medical institutions with telemedicine services in 14 impoverished counties, and then an electronic questionnaire survey on willingness to use telemedicine was conducted through the Telemedicine Collaboration Network of the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University. Chi-square test and multi-factor logistic regression were used to analyze the willingness to use telemedicine and its influencing factors among medical staff in poor areas. Results Two hundred and eighty-six questionnaires were received in this survey, with 278 valid questionnaires. 69.78% (194/278) of medical staff in poor areas were willing to use telemedicine. The results of single factor analysis showed that age, educational level, professional title, satisfaction with system operation convenience, satisfaction with service process,incentive measures, assistance to medical staff’s technical level, and reduction of patients’ medical expenses (χ2=15.543, χ2=7.355, χ2=7.957, χ2=17.961, χ2=13.413, χ2=18.171, χ2=6.971, χ2=10.639, all P<0.05) were factors influencing the willingness to use telemedicine. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that age, educational level, satisfaction with system operation convenience, satisfaction with service process, incentive measures, assistance to medical staff’s technical level, and reduction of patients’ medical expenses were related to the medical staff’s willingness to use telemedicine. Conclusions The medical staff’s willingness to adopt telemedicine in poor areas should be improved. The results suggest that we should promote the willingness to adopt telemedicine from the following ways: increasing publicity, developing information system standards, improving telemedicine policies and regulations, establishing compensation and incentive mechanisms, strengthening distance education, and incorporating the medical insurance system.
罗扬, 刘征, 赵文龙. 贫困地区医务人员远程医疗使用意愿及影响因素分析[J]. 实用预防医学, 2021, 28(3): 299-302.
LUO Yang, LIU Zheng, ZHAO Wen-long. Willingness to use telemedicine and its influencing factors among medical staff in poor areas. , 2021, 28(3): 299-302.
2021, Vol. 28 
