By Sara Heath
- Chronic disease management and treatment adherence are taking a pretty serious hit as of late, and that is largely thanks to the spread of the novel coronavirus, according to data reported by Evidation.
As the virus continues to loom large over the nation, patients are fearful of engaging with the healthcare system, even for needs unrelated to COVID-19, according to the survey data from some 185,000 patients across the country.
Overall, about one-fifth of patients regardless of disease state are worried about maintaining their health during the coronavirus outbreak. Over half are worried about visiting the doctor’s office, with 10 percent saying they are so worried they would forego care altogether.
And that trend is stark for patients with chronic illness, who need ongoing disease management in order to stave off high-acuity health episodes. High-acuity healthcare encounters are costly for patient, payer, and provider, and can be exceptionally disruptive to patients’ lives.
Strong patient engagement in care plans has long been the bedrock of chronic disease management, with frequent low-acuity check-ins with primary care providers and specialists being a key component of that care.
But now with social distancing protocol and concerns about coronavirus spread in healthcare facilities, those management strategies may be at risk, the survey data showed.
Just about equal proportions of individuals with chronic illness expressed trepidation accessing non-coronavirus care right now. Twenty-one percent said they are worried about maintaining their health through their medical care, and 53 percent said they were worried about visiting the doctor’s office or hospital for a non-coronavirus need.
Ten percent of those respondents said they were so worried they would forego care altogether, a trend that has long been regarded as a major threat to good chronic care management.
And those concerns are starting to play out, the survey continued. Thirty-six percent of patients with chronic illness reported disruptions in their non-coronavirus care, with chronic pain patients among the hardest hit.
Fewer patients reported issues with getting their hands on medications used to manage chronic illness, although the numbers are still concerning, the survey showed. Across eight common chronic illnesses, 8 percent of patients said they faced disruptions getting their prescription medications.
Seventeen percent of patients with chronic pain and 18 percent with rheumatoid arthritis said they struggled to get their prescription medications.
Telehealth has been lauded as a key technology to fill this void. A patient should be able to consult with her doctor regarding her chronic disease management using the remote tool, thus keeping both parties safe from the virus.
But according to the survey data, telehealth isn’t able to entirely account for this new-found gap in care. Among those who reported having disruptions in their care access, regardless of disease state, only 39 percent said they’d used telehealth instead. This leaves 60 percent of those individuals without a care option.
Among those with a chronic illness who saw disruptions in care access, telehealth was slightly more effective. Thirty-nine percent of these respondents said they’d had a telehealth visit with a doctor. Fifty-nine percent did not try to connect with a clinician over telehealth while 2 percent were unable to use the technology.
Again, some disease types were impacted more than others. More than half of chronic pain patients reported some sort of remote care visit use, either via video visit or phone, text, or email devices.
Individuals with arrhythmia and depression also reported higher-than-average remote care access use.
These results come as the medical industry grapples with what to make of non-coronavirus healthcare. As hospitals and clinics grow wary of reaching maximum or surge capacity with COVID-19 cases, they must also work to maintain other forms of healthcare.
In late March, guidelines from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) determined hospitals should defer all elective procedures or surgeries. This came in an effort to adhere to social distancing protocol while freeing up much-needed space in medical facilities.
But as the coronavirus outbreak stretches on, questions linger about how to treat these patients and individuals with chronic illness. How do we avoid disastrous health episodes among individuals who do not have COVID-19?
This most recent data outlines the state of patient care access for those in chronic disease management plans, ideally helping to format a path forward for the medical industry.
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April 21, 2020
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How Is Coronavirus Affecting Chronic Disease Management Care? - PatientEngagementHIT.com
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