Telemedicine in primary healthcare for the quality of care in times of COVID-19: A scoping review protocol

Cícera Renata Diniz Vieira Silva*, Rayssa Horácio Lopes, Osvaldo De Goes Bay Júnior, Miguel Fuentealba-Torres, Ricardo Alexandre Arcêncio, Severina Alice Da Costa Uchôa

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

Introduction Telemedicine gained strength in primary healthcare (PHC) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, there is a need to know its scope, technologies used and impacts on people's health. This study will map telemedicine use in PHC around the world and its impacts on quality of care in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods This is a scoping review protocol developed according to Arksey and O'Malley and Levac et al, based on the Joanna Briggs Institute manual, and guided by the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR). The records will be mapped in the following multidisciplinary health sciences databases: Virtual Health Library, PubMed, Scopus, Web of Science, CINAHL and Embase. Searches will also be conducted on Google Scholar, preprint repositories and specific COVID-19 databases (grey literature). Quantitative data will be analysed using descriptive statistics, while thematic analysis will be performed for qualitative data. Preliminary findings will be presented to stakeholders to identify missing studies and develop effective dissemination strategies. Ethics and dissemination Results will be disseminated through publication in an open access scientific journal, scientific events, and academic and community newspapers. Ethical approval was obtained due to stakeholder consultation, but will not involve the direct participation of patients. Link to the protocol record in the Open Science Framework (OSF) (osf.io/q94en).

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere046227
Pages (from-to)e046227
JournalBMJ Open
Volume11
Issue number7
DOIs
StatePublished - 12 Jul 2021

Bibliographical note

© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2021. Re-use permitted under CC BY-NC. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.

Keywords

  • COVID-19
  • primary care
  • quality in health care
  • telemedicine

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