The Center for Public Opinion (COP) of the Technological University of Mexico conducted a study that showed that 63% of those surveyed believe that telemedicine can solve health coverage problems.
Almost two years after the start of the COVID-19 outbreak and the pandemic, the use of digital technologies to provide health services has increased considerably in public and private health systems. In this sense, the study "Telemedicine: challenges and alternatives of medical practice", was presented by the COP and the Directorate of Health Sciences of UNITEC, which shows the advances of telemedicine and remote medical care in Mexico. in recent times and how is its acceptance among the population.
The survey methodology was designed by the COP UNITEC and was applied through an online panel to 736 people between September 9 and 26, 2021. As the study explained, the composition of the panel was designed taking into account the sociodemographic characteristics of the Mexican population such as age, sex, socioeconomic level, entity and occupation.
Some of the data that the study showed was that 79% of the respondents think that technological tools allow them to have a medical consultation from anywhere. Likewise, 84% of the respondents think that remote medical consultations will become more and more common.
Regarding the population's knowledge about tools such as telemedicine, 75% said they had heard of health professionals who provide their services remotely, for the prevention, diagnosis or treatment of diseases, using remote communication technologies.
Similarly, 74% of those surveyed agreed that Mexico should promote telemedicine. Some of the most identified advantages among those surveyed were the reduction of costs of hospitals and clinics; saving of time to the patient; greater accessibility for doctors, and a more accessible cost for medical consultations.
In this sense, 63% of the respondents think that telemedicine would solve health coverage problems in the country, and 53% consider that more telemedicine services are needed in the public health system in Mexico.
The health emergency accelerated the use of telemedicine in Mexico and more people seem willing to obtain medical consultations from a distance. The study also showed that 88% of people would consider seeking telemedicine services to follow up on their consultations.
On the other hand, the presentation of the study was carried out through a virtual conference, which included the participation of the director of Telehealth and head of the General Directorate of the National Center of Technological Excellence of the Ministry of Health, Adrián Pacheco López; and Dr. Indiana Torres Escobar, director of the Faculty of Medicine of the Meritorious Autonomous University of Puebla.
