Patient Satisfaction With Telemedicine Versus In-Person Speech-Language Therapy: A Systematic Review

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Telemedicine has become a popular option to provide speech-language pathology (SLP) services during the COVID-19 global pandemic. We sought to systematically review the literature to evaluate patient satisfaction with telemedicine vs in-person visits for SLP services. Method(s) A systematic review was performed in Embase, MEDLINE, AMED, and Scopus databases. Search terms included variations of speech-language pathology, telemedicine, and video. The initial search yielded 549 studies. Of these studies, 37 met criteria for full-text screening. Inclusion criteria included (1) age >18 years and (2) patient satisfaction as an outcome measure. Case reports were excluded. Result(s) Twenty-nine studies met inclusion criteria;8 studies used validated satisfaction questionnaires, 17 used nonvalidated questionnaires, and 4 used qualitative interviews. Of the 29 studies, 3 were randomized controlled trials (RCT). Of the 26 non-RCTs, 24 reported >50% overall satisfaction with televisits. Six studies evaluated patient preference for inperson vs televisits;all studies reported >50% of patients having no preference. Eleven studies evaluated willingness to reengage in telemedicine, and all reported that >50% of patients were willing to reengage with telemedicine. Of the RCTs, 2 used the same validated survey, the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Treatment Satisfaction- General (FACIT-TS-G), for patients undergoing posttreatment laryngectomy and swallow rehabilitation therapy. Both studies revealed that patients rated televisits with significantly higher satisfaction for the overall results of therapy (P<.02). A third of the RCTs, which focused on patients with chronic stuttering, found telemedicine was more frequently described as extremely convenient (P=.018). Conclusion(s) Although most studies evaluating patient satisfaction with SLP interventions via telemedicine reported greater than 50% overall satisfaction, there was frequent use of nonvalidated measures of patient satisfaction (17 of 29). Use of validated measures is warranted for evaluating patient satisfaction.