Abstract:

In March 2021, one year has passed since the COVID 19 pandemic appeared in Poland. The quantitative increase in telemedicine services, triggered out of necessity by a pandemic, does not necessarily indicate a qualitative development which is measured by satisfaction with tele-consultation.

The aim of the study was to determine about patients' opinions on the quality of medical tele-consultation after a year of pandemic experience in Poland. In February and March 2021, five problems in five age cohorts from 18 - 80 years (N = 500) were examined using the Likert scale, using the following survey techniques: CAWI (N = 104), CATI (N = 31), PAPI ( N = 365).

In the opinion of all respondents, tele-consultation is not a better solution than a personal visit to a doctor. The quality of tele-consultation was assessed more negatively by specialist physicians than by general practitioners. The respondents did not have an unambiguous opinion regarding the comparison of the quality of tele-consultation with the quality of a personal visit to a doctor. At the same time, the respondents who used the tele-consultation were moderately satisfied with it. The sense of security of the patient's personal and medical data was also moderately positive.

The respondents only show understanding for the current conditions. In the event of a pandemic, tele-consultation is a better solution than the risk of contracting a virus or the lack of advice in conditions of excessive workload of patient care facilities.