Effect of Applying Telemedicine Follow-up versus Scheduled Clinic Follow-up on Renal-Transplanted Patients’ Satisfaction

Kidney transplants are becoming common surgical procedures with high success rates. Although many specializations have effectively employed telemedicine, the practice of kidney transplantation has lagged in its adoption. Aim: To evaluate effect of applying telemedicine follow-up versus scheduled clinic follow-up on renal-transplanted patients’ satisfaction. Design: quasi-experimental. Setting: The Menoufia University Hospital's Renal Surgeries follow-up outpatient clinic, Menoufia Governorate, Egypt. Subjects: A convenient sample of Forty-two adult renal-transplanted participants; half of them who underwent follow-up care via video and telephone calls interaction (telemedicine group) and the other half in scheduled follow-up clinic care (control group). Methods: patients who volunteered to participate were evaluated for patients’ satisfaction and healthcare use by employing; the Kidney Transplant Understanding Tool (K-TUT), Telemedicine Satisfaction Questionnaire, and Health Utilization Questionnaire. Results: There were 21 telemedicine participants that were confirmed and other 21 patients as the control group. The total average age (±SD) was 50 (±5.51) years for the telemedicine sample and 51 (±6.01) years for the control group, correspondingly. The two samples' levels of overall patients satisfaction were comparable (p =0.78). While telemedicine participants' satisfaction with social interactions and communication was comparable to that of clinic patient populations', they had much shorter commute (p< 0.0001) and waiting durations (p< 0.0001). 85.7% (18/21) of telemedicine participants choose to utilize the services again. Conclusion: Telemedicine use seemed to be a more convenient and affordable option than scheduling follow-up meetings. Telemedicine offers the potential to increase clinic efficiency, shorten patient wait durations, and lower expenses for those undergoing kidney transplants