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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Arq Neuropsiquiatr 2021; 79(07): 658-664
DOI: 10.1590/0004-282X-ANP-2020-0488
Brazilian Academy of Neurology

Telemedicine use among neurologists before and during COVID-19 pandemic

Uso da telemedicina pelos neurologistas antes e durante a pandemia de COVID-19
Emanuelle Roberta da Silva Aquino 
1   Academia Brasileira de Neurologia, Comissão Aberta de Telemedicina, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
5   Universidade de São Paulo, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
7   Hospital Sírio Libanês, Telemedicina, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
,
Renan Barros Domingues 
1   Academia Brasileira de Neurologia, Comissão Aberta de Telemedicina, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
6   Santa Casa de Misericórdia, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
,
Carlos Eduardo Mantese 
1   Academia Brasileira de Neurologia, Comissão Aberta de Telemedicina, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
7   Hospital Sírio Libanês, Telemedicina, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
8   Hospital Mãe de Deus, Porto Alegre RS, Brazil.
,
Francisca Goreth Malheiro Moraes Fantini 
2   Academia Brasileira de Neurologia, Comissão de Exercício Profissional, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
,
Ricardo Nitrini 
3   Academia Brasileira de Neurologia, Diretoria Científica, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
5   Universidade de São Paulo, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
,
Gilmar Fernandes do Prado 
4   Academia Brasileira de Neurologia, Diretoria Executiva, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
9   Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Departamento de Neurologia, São Paulo SP, Brazil.
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ABSTRACT

Background: After the public health emergency due to COVID-19 was declared in Brazil, the federal government temporarily regulated and authorized the use of telemedicine services for patient consultation, monitoring, and diagnosis. For more than a decade, neurologists have recognized the benefits of telemedicine in the acute management of stroke patients. However, as the use of telemedicine was restricted until the COVID-19 pandemic, the view of Brazilian neurologists about telemedicine is unknown. Methods: All neurologists registered at the Brazilian Academy of Neurology were invited by e-mail to participate in a survey about personal perceptions on telemedicine use. Results: One hundred sixty-two neurologists from all regions of Brazil answered the online questionnaire. The survey showed that 18.5% of participants worked with telemedicine before the pandemic, while 63.6% reported working with telemedicine during the pandemic. The main telemedicine modalities used during the pandemic were teleorientation and teleconsultation. Discussion: According to our data, the COVID-19 pandemic deeply influenced the behavior of Brazilian neurologists, who developed a more favorable view about telemedicine and actively searched for information about telemedicine. As there is a need for more training in this area in Brazil, universities and medical societies must strive to improve telemedicine education. Expanding the use of high-quality teleneurology can contribute to a better care for patients with neurological diseases in Brazil.

RESUMO

Antecedentes: Considerando a Emergência em Saúde Pública de Importância Nacional em decorrência da infecção pelo coronavírus, o governo federal brasileiro temporariamente regulamentou o uso da telemedicina diretamente entre médico e paciente, para consulta, monitorização e diagnóstico. Há mais de uma década os neurologistas reconhecem os benefícios da telemedicina no tratamento do AVC agudo. Entretanto, como o uso da telemedicina no país era restrito até a pandemia da COVID-19, a magnitude do envolvimento dos neurologistas brasileiros com a telemedicina não é conhecida. Métodos: Todos os membros da Academia Brasileira de Neurologia foram convidados por e-mail a responder voluntariamente um questionário sobre seu envolvimento pessoal com telemedicina antes e durante a pandemia. Resultados: 162 neurologistas, representando todas as regiões do Brasil, responderam o questionário. A pesquisa mostrou que 18,5% dos respondedores trabalhavam com telemedicina antes da pandemia da COVID-19, enquanto 63,6% afirmaram trabalhar com telemedicina durante a pandemia. As principais modalidades de telemedicina utilizadas durante a pandemia são a teleorientação e a teleconsulta. Discussão: De acordo com esses resultados, a pandemia da COVID-19 influenciou profundamente o comportamento dos neurologistas brasileiros, que passaram a demonstrar uma ideia mais favorável sobre telemedicina, e determinou uma busca ativa de informações sobre teleneurologia. Há necessidade de maior capacitação nesta área em nosso país. Universidades e sociedades médicas devem se esforçar para melhorar a educação em telemedicina. A expansão do uso da teleneurologia com alta qualidade contribuirá para um melhor cuidado dos pacientes com doenças neurológicas no Brasil.

Keywords:

Telemedicine - Neurology - COVID-19 - Teleneurology - Remote consultation

Palavras-chave:

Telemedicina - Neurologia - COVID-19 - Teleneurologia - Teleconsulta

Authors’ contribution:

ERSA, RBD, CEM: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, project administration, supervision, validation, writing of original draft, draft review and editing; FGMMF, RN, GFP: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, project administration, supervision, draft review and editing.




Publikationsverlauf

Eingereicht: 15. Oktober 2020

Angenommen: 01. April 2021

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
01. Juni 2023

© 2021. Academia Brasileira de Neurologia. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commecial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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