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. 2021 Jun 9;67(3):201–209. doi: 10.1016/j.jphys.2021.06.009

Table 5.

Patients’ experiences with physiotherapy care provided by videoconference.

Survey questions Individual
(n = 341)
Group
(n = 77)
VC consultations for this problem (n), mean (SD) 3.9 (5.5) 17.9 (26.4)
Percentage of physiotherapy consultations delivered via VC (%), mean (SD) 56 (34) 53 (39)
Had prior in-person consultations with the same physiotherapist for the same problem, n (%)a 292 (86) 55 (71)
Payment for VC consultation, n (%)
 patient paid entire fee 140 (41) 38 (49)
 patient paid part fee 104 (30) 27 (35)
 fee paid by other 97 (28) 12 (16)
Funding source for VC consultation, if part/all of fee paid by other, n (%)b
 private health insurance 100 (50) 26 (67)
 Medicare 62 (31) 7 (14)
 workers compensation scheme 11 (5) 1 (3)
 National Disability Insurance Scheme 19 (9) 6 (15)
 Department of Veterans' Affairs 6 (3) 0 (0)
 Transport Accident Commission 8 (4) 1 (3)
Expectations and experiences with VC, n (%)
 less than what I expected 20 (6) 5 (6)
 what I expected 112 (33) 22 (29)
 exceeded my expectations 209 (61) 50 (65)
Quality compared to in-person, n (%)c
 VC lower quality 97 (42) 19 (43)
 VC same quality 111 (48) 16 (36)
 VC better quality 24 (10) 9 (20)
Most valued about VC, n (%)d
 convenience 299 (88) N/A
 access 183 (54) N/A
 less waiting time 134 (39) N/A
 undivided attention of physio 110 (32) N/A
 treatment effectiveness 79 (23) N/A
 privacy 71 (21) N/A
 cost savings 67 (20) N/A
 COVID-19 safety/social distancing 51 (15) N/A
 other 18 (5) N/A

Numbers do not sum to the total for some items due to missing data.

N/A = not assessed, VC = videoconference.

a

Number (%) of patients.

b

Only includes patients who had part/all of fee paid by other: n = 201 for individual and n = 39 for group.

c

Only includes patients who had received previous in-person care: n = 232 for individual and n = 44 for group.

d

Percentages total > 100 as respondents could chose more than one answer.