[E-physicians in Hungary: Experiences and opinions related to digital health among Hungarian physicians]. / E-orvosok Magyarországon: Digitális egészséggel kapcsolatos tapasztalatok és vélemények a hazai orvosok körében.

INTRODUCTION: The digitalization of healthcare is one of the most topical issues in terms of the present and future of healthcare. The coronavirus pandemic has shed light on the potential inherent in these technologies, and at the same time brought to the surface countless tasks and problems that need to be solved. OBJECTIVE: In our national survey, our aim is to find out how medical doctors are adapting to digital healthcare solutions. METHOD: Between July 2021 and May 2022, we conducted an online questionnaire survey among doctors working in Hungary. 1774 people answered our questions, including 1576 general practitioners and 198 dentists. In this paper, the 1576 general practitioners' responses are presented. RESULTS: 78.8% of the respondent doctors recommend websites to their patients on a more or less regular basis, 52.8% have recommended apps and 46.0% have recommended social media resources. The respondent doctors perceive a high demand from patients for communication by e-mail (83.7% indicated). 86.4% of doctors are aware of telemedicine solutions and 47.5% of respondents would like to use them intensively in the next 3 years. A significant proportion of respondents would like to use apps (56.2%), sensors, portable diagnostic devices (49.0%) and artificial intelligence (28.3%) in the next 3 years. Websites, apps and social media resources are significantly more frequently recommended by general practitioners and they are the ones who are most in favour of the use of the internet for patient health and telemedicine. CONCLUSION: Our respondents manifest fundamentally positive feelings towards the digitalization of healthcare and are characterized by a cautious openness regarding the implementation and adaptation of technologies. Orv Hetil. 2023; 164(4): 132-139.

Internet-based health communication opportunities (blogs, podcasts, video channels) and the social media / Internetalapú egészségkommunikációs lehetoségek (blogok, podcastok, videócsatornák) és a közösségi média.

Összefoglaló. Az elmúlt években mind laikus, mind szakmai oldalról az internet vált az elso számú egészségügyi információforrássá, amit a COVID-19-pandémia tovább fokozott. Az online térben számos, különbözo jellegu platform áll rendelkezésre egészségkommunikációs célokra, melyek markánsan különböznek egymástól az átadható információ mennyiségében és minoségében, a létrehozásukhoz szükséges anyagi vagy idobeli ráfordításban, továbbá az ott létrehozott tartalom fogyasztási lehetoségeiben. Összefoglaló közleményünkben rendszerezve mutatjuk be a szöveg-, a hang-, illetve a videóalapú online egészségügyi edukációs formák elonyeit és hátrányait. Külön foglalkozunk a közösségi média (social media) egészségügyi vonatkozásaival, a benne rejlo lehetoségekkel, kiemelve a pandémia kapcsán felmerült problémákat. Az egyes platformok egészségüggyel kapcsolatos történelmének feldolgozása mellett gyakorlati oldalról mutatjuk be azok hasznosíthatóságát, elosegítve ezzel az online térbe terelt kollégák munkáját. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(4): 132-139. Summary. In recent years, the internet has become the leading source of health-related information for both professionals and laymen, and this process has been further speeded up by the Covid-19 pandemic. There are many different platforms available for health communication purposes online, that vary greatly in the quantity and quality of transferable information; the time or financial input, which are necessary to create them; and the possibilities of the utilization of the created content. In our review, we present systematically the advantages and disadvantages of the text-, audio-, and video-based online health-related education platforms. We specify the health-related aspects of social media and its potential usability, focusing on the problems allied to the pandemic. We present the practical use of the different platforms from a healthcare perspective through the review of their respective histories, thus providing guidance to the colleagues working online. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(4): 132-139.

E-páciensek Magyarországon: Digitális egészséggel kapcsolatos ismeretek, szokások egy országos reprezentatív felmérés tükrében.

INTRODUCTION: The impact of digitalisation on healthcare has become one of the most important research areas in recent years. The COVID-19 epidemic has been a major driver in this process. OBJECTIVE: In our nationally representative, population-based survey (n = 1500), we sought to find out how patients in Hungary use digital health tools, what the advantages and disadvantages of introducing and using these technologies are, and how this is transforming the doctor-patient relationship. METHODS: We conducted a national representative telephone questionnaire survey (CATI). The sample is representative of the adult population of Hungary in terms of gender, age, type of settlement and education. RESULTS: 81.3% of the respondents use the internet - 87.6% of whom use it in relation to health and illness, too. This is 71.2% of the total sample. Websites (76.3%) and social media (47.3%) are the main sources of information on the internet; e-prescription and online appointment booking are the most known by patients (92.6% and 85.2%, respectively), while almost half of the respondents would like to try telehealth and would welcome a recommendation from their doctor on reliable websites, apps and sensors. Our results highlighted that the effect of the type of settlement on access to digital health is not significant, but that the effect of age, education and gender is decisive. CONCLUSION: Data from our national representative population survey indicate that the use of digital health solutions is already an integral part of care and that there is a strong demand for further digital options. Orv Hetil. 2022; 163(29): 1159-1165.

Telemedicine in community shelters: possibilities to improve chronic care among people experiencing homelessness in Hungary.

BACKGROUND: Digital health has expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic, while the exclusion of vulnerable populations with limited access to these technologies widens the gap to receive proper care. There is very little data available on the feasibility of telemedicine solutions regarding the chronic care of homeless persons. METHODS: In our study, 75 participants experiencing homelessness were recruited from four social institutions in Budapest, Hungary. The telecare pilot service consisted of six online consultations with a physician and was available in shelters biweekly. Self-developed questionnaires were used after every online session on the originating and remote sites as well, while a follow-up study was also completed among patients after four to six months of pilot closure. Parameters as frequencies, averages, and percentage distributions were analyzed and two linear regression models were built on explaining the doctors' and patients' overall rating of visits. RESULTS: During the pilot, 92.2% (n = 415) of originally planned visits were delivered and 55 clients (73.3%) attended the full program. Both the patients' and physicians' overall satisfaction was very high (4.52 and 4.79, respectively, on a 5-point Likert scale) and the patients' overall rating remained similarly high during the follow-up. Comparing the first and sixth visits, physicians reported significant improvements in almost all aspects. The linear regression models proved that confidence in the patients' assessment and diagnosis had the most prominent effect on the physicians' overall rating, while ease of use and lack of communication gaps influenced positively the patients' rating. CONCLUSION: The results suggest that telehealth services represent a promising tool to ensure better care continuity while using shelter infrastructure and on-site assistance might reduce the digital exclusion of people experiencing homelessness.

Exploratory attitude survey of homeless persons regarding telecare services in shelters providing mid- and long-term accommodation: The importance of trust.

BACKGROUND: With the expansion of digital health, it is imperative to consider intervention techniques in order not to be the cause of even more social health inequalities in underserved populations struggling with chronic diseases. Telemedicine solutions for homeless persons might compensate for shortcomings in access to valuable health services in different settings. The main aim of our research was to examine the attitudes and openness of homeless persons regarding telecare on a Hungarian sample. METHODS: Quantitative survey among homeless people (n = 98) was completed in 4 shelters providing mid- and long-term accommodation in Budapest, Hungary. Attitudes regarding healthcare service accessibility and telecare were measured by a self-developed questionnaire of the research team. Telecare attitude comparison was made with data of a Hungarian weighted reference group of non-homeless persons recruited from 2 primary care units (n = 110). RESULTS: A significant fraction of homeless people with mid- or long-term residency in homeless shelters did not oppose the use of telecare via live online video consultation and there was no difference compared to the national reference group (averages of 3.09 vs. 3.15, respectively). Results of the homeless group indicate that those more satisfied with healthcare services, in general, manifest more openness to telecare. It is clearly demonstrated by the multivariate analysis that those participants in the homeless group who had problems getting health care in the last year definitely preferred in-person doctor-patient consultations. CONCLUSION: Digital health technologies offer a potentially important new pathway for the prevention and treatment of chronic conditions among homeless persons. Based on the attitudes towards telecare, initiating an on-site telecare program for mid- and long-term residents of homeless shelters might enable better care continuity. Our results draw attention to the key factors including building trust in the implementation of such programs among underserved and other vulnerable patient groups.

Possibilities of telemedicine regarding the COVID-19 pandemic in light of the international and Hungarian experiences and recommendations / A telemedicina lehetoségei a COVID-19-pandémia kapcsán a nemzetközi és a magyarországi tapasztalatok és ajánlások tükrében: (A COVID­19-pandémia orvosszakmai kérdései)

The COVID-19 outbreak was formally announced as a pandemic by WHO on the 11th of March, 2020. This attracts attention to the possibilities of telemedicine again. In support of stopping the spread of the novel coronavirus infection, whilst keeping the healthcare system running and minimizing the risk of being infected, we also need to find new ways, methods, and platforms to deal with this pandemic. By providing a literature overview and sharing practical guidelines, including the special example of Hungarian teledentistry, we present both international and Hungarian initiatives to involve telemedicine on different levels of healthcare systems regarding COVID-19. Both international and national data show that telemedicine can play a major role in the triage process, early identification, diagnosis and treatment of infected individuals, and management of patient pathways in a way that ensures the medical team does not come into contact with potentially infected patients. It also plays an important role in remote monitoring of medical conditions and care of patients with chronic diseases and reconnects vulnerable groups of healthcare personnel to the care system. In addition to the potential benefits of telemedicine, we must not forget the limitations of this method. However, it is important to emphasize that due to its wide availability, telemedicine services can provide sufficient flexibility for both primary and specialist care (outpatient and inpatient clinical care). For that very reason, it is an urgent need to define the national professional guidelines, legal and financing possibilities in this field in a long-term sustainable way.* Orv Hetil. 2020; 161(24): 983-992. *Disclaimer: We closed the writing of this manuscript on the 30th of April, 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic and related research studies still have been changing dynamically since then.