Diagnosis in Telemedicine

The first wave of the coronavirus 2019 pandemic spurred a massive increase in telemedicine utilization. In this chapter, the authors pose and answer what they consider to be the important strategic questions for the clinician or clinician leader considering adoption of telemedicine. Telemedicine software platforms fall under the Food and Drug Administration regulation as medical devices. Psychiatric assessment lends itself well to the telemedicine format and has been shown to be effective in multiple studies and meta-analyses, including among pediatric patients. A systematic review of the use of telepsychiatry in depression found that patient satisfaction is equivalent to or higher than face-to-face interventions. Abdominal tenderness by telemedicine requires patient self-assessment, and to date, there is little evidence that patients can accurately self-assess tenderness.