VIRTUAL AND IN-PERSON CARE DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC LED TO EQUIVALENT PATIENT SATISFACTION FOR REPRODUCTIVE ENDOCRINOLOGY AND INFERTILITY (REI) PATIENTS

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether a shiftto virtual care during the COVID-19 pandemic negatively impacted patient satisfaction among REI patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A modified version of a validated multiple-choice survey assessing satisfaction with care was sent to current patients who agreed to participate in research at a tertiary medical center. The survey evaluated satisfaction with multiple aspects of care. Respondents were categorized by visit type in-person only (n=23), virtual-only (n=12), and a mix of both settings (n=52). Responses were dichotomized into “Agree” or “Disagree”, with neutral grouped with “agree”. Chi-squared tests of independence to assess differences between groups were conducted in R (Version 3.4.4). P<0.05 was interpreted as statistically significant. The study was approved by the University of California San Francisco Institutional Review Board. RESULTS: Out of 1282 patients who received an invitation to participate, 526 patients (41.0%) completed our survey. Eighty-seven of these were seen by the Division of REI and included in this study. Median participant age was 36.5 (range 21-76). There were no significant differences in respondents' satisfaction with the type of care received (in-person vs. virtual vs. mixed, p=0.43). There were no statistically significant differences in respondents' ability to develop a relationship with their provider (p=0.25), provider's friendliness (p=0.50), skills or knowledge (p=0.71), and concern (p=0.80) as rated by respondents. The frequency of visits starting on time (p=0.50), convenience of the visit date and time (p=0.78), and the amount of time spent with the provider (p=0.89) were also similar across all three groups. Although 56% of respondents who had mixed care reported that virtual visits may have compromised their health, this was not shown in either the virtual-only or in-person only groups, introducing the possibility of a confounder. Sixty-eight percent of respondents seen virtually were likely to recommend virtual visits to others. When asked about preferences for primary visit type after the COVID-19 pandemic, at least 50% of participants in all groups preferred in-person visits, with a minority choosing virtual visits (22%), alternating between virtual and in-person (16%), or expressing no preference (5%). CONCLUSIONS: A shift to virtual care during the COVID-19 pandemic did not appear to impact patient satisfaction with the care received as patients were highly satisfied regardless of the setting in which they received care. A majority of patients seen virtually were likely to recommend virtual visits to others. Nonetheless, a plurality of patients in all three groups preferred their primary visit type to be in-person. IMPACT STATEMENT This study shows no significant differences in patient satisfaction regardless of visit type. Further research is needed to understand how to optimize virtual care delivery after the COVID-19 pandemic.