A new study conducted by WHO/Europe and the Faculty of Health Sciences of the Open University of Catalonia (an approved WHO collaborator in digital health) shows that telemedicine technologies have clear benefits in detecting, diagnosing, managing, treating and monitoring chronic diseases in the European region, iSanidad reports (in Spanish).
Digital technologies were used to provide essential healthcare services during the Covid-19 pandemic. Telemedicine has already been considered a cost-effective and accessible method of providing high-quality care and reducing overall morbidity and mortality. Over 20,000 studies covering more than 20,000 patients from 53 countries were analyzed to get an overview of telemedicine in Europe and Central Asia.
The use of telemedicine resulted in better clinical conclusions and better follow-up by health professionals. As a result, patients will benefit.
“We found that the use of digital tools to deliver health services had a clear and significant effect on patients. We see better clinical outcomes, better follow-up by healthcare professionals, and an overall benefit for both patients and healthcare workers”, explains by Dr David Novillo-Ortiz, regional advisor on data and digital health and lead author of the study.