Dados do Trabalho

Título

Impact of the SARS-Cov-2 pandemic on patients with Alzheimer's Disease: a retrospective and evolutionary analysis of the degree of satisfaction with telecare

Resumo

Introduction: Telemedicine allows Alzheimer's Disease (AD) patients to overcome barriers of access to health care services and increases accessibility for people with cognitive and functional impairments. Objective: This study aims to evaluate the feasibility of telehealth activity in the follow-up of patients with AD, focusing on the level of satisfaction with telemedicine care. Methodology: A retrospective cohort of 74 AD patients treated at a tertiary hospital in Fortaleza was carried out, from 2018 to February 2022. Throughout the cohort of the present study, questions were asked about telemedicine satisfaction. Results: Telemedicine was adopted as a modality in consultations for many patients during the pandemic. Throughout the cohort of the present study, we observed that 35 patients were seen at some point (2020-2021/22) by telemedicine; and that 39 had exclusively face-to-face consultations. In between the 39 patients treated by telemedicine, 29 (83%) patients, caregivers or family members interviewed reported having enjoyed the service and that it was satisfactory to their demands. Regarding the scores for telemedicine consultations, 81% of the interviewees assigned a grade of 8 or higher: 29% rated the service with a grade 10 (ten), 23% with 9 (nine) and 29% with 8 (eight). However, 3% of respondents assigned grade 0 (zero), 3%, grade 4 (four), 9%, grade 5 (five) and 6%, grade 7 (seven). Conclusion: This telehealth intervention promoted high levels of satisfaction during the isolation of the pandemic.