More than 10,000 health care professionals took part in VTN’s second annual survey to benchmark telehealth usage throughout Virginia.
RICHMOND, Va., June 13, 2023 – A recent survey of Virginia health care professionals finds that eight in 10 (80%) providers using telehealth saw improvements in their patients’ continuity of care, and nearly nine in 10 (88%) feel confident in the quality of care they’re able to offer patients via telehealth.
The findings are from a just-released statewide survey of more than 10,500 licensed health care providers, commissioned by the Virginia Telehealth Network (VTN), a nonprofit membership organization that promotes telehealth efforts in the commonwealth.
The health care provider feedback comes as the Public Health Emergency (PHE) – a federal declaration that included waivers to temporarily expand access to telehealth services – ended in May. Sixty-percent of respondents who use telehealth plan to increase its usage, up from 56% during the pandemic in 2021.
Seventy-six percent of providers are concerned that the ending of the PHE will result in a reduction or removal of reimbursements for telehealth services, and 88% say that their patients would be disappointed if they stopped offering telehealth.
Each year, VTN conducts a survey of active licensed health care providers across the commonwealth to better understand Virginia’s current and future needs with virtual care, which is supported by the Virginia Department of Health Professions and the Virginia Department of Health.
Respondents also pointed to other benefits of telemedicine. More than eight in 10 (87%) agreed that telemedicine allowed them to address patient-care barriers. Three in four (76%) practitioners surveyed agreed that telehealth allows them to see more patients—with 57% taking on new patients beyond their local community, underscoring the capacity for health care providers to serve patients in historically underserved communities.
The virtual care options also allowed practices to enhance care coordination for their patients (cited by 63%) and see more patients (67%). Among those who are not employing telehealth, more than half (56%) said that the platform was not compatible with their practice area.
As new legislation is introduced to expand telehealth access for all Virginians regardless of location and address barriers to care, VTN points to these key findings and data in support of advancing the adoption, implementation and accessible integration of telehealth in the commonwealth.
Methodology
The 2nd Annual Benchmarking Telehealth Usage in Virginia survey was conducted January 2023 – March 2023. It was accessible via Typeform and received 10,583 responses – a 14% increase over the previous year’s inaugural survey. It was distributed to select Virginia Department of Health Providers (DHP) licensees through direct email communications, partner association outreach and VTN communications channels.
About the Virginia Telehealth Network
The Virginia Telehealth Network (VTN) is a 501c3 nonprofit membership organization dedicated to supporting telehealth efforts in the Commonwealth. Started in 2006 by a group of health professionals with an interest in promoting telehealth, VTN seeks to provide education, resources, and best practices to telehealth stakeholders while advocating for safe and effective delivery of telehealth services. In addition, VTN pursues to develop and maintain strong partnerships that allow for the exploration and promotion of innovative programs that promote access to high-quality health care.