Optimizing Telehealth: Leveraging Key Performance Indicators for Enhanced TeleHealth and Digital Healthcare Outcomes (Telemechron Study)

Healthcare (Basel). 2024 Jul 1;12(13):1319. doi: 10.3390/healthcare12131319.

Abstract

Over the past decade, the use of telehealth has garnered increasing attention. The focus on quality aspects has seen significant growth in tandem with the telehealth expansion. Having useful indicators in this area is becoming increasingly strategic for fully integrating the technology into the health domain. These indicators can help monitor and evaluate the quality of telehealth services, guiding improvements and ensuring that these digital solutions meet the necessary standards for effective healthcare delivery. The purpose of this study is to analyze Key performance indicators (KPIs) in telehealth within institutional websites and the scientific dissemination world by means of a narrative review. A narrative review was proposed with these two specific points of view based on a standardized checklist and a quality control procedure for including scientific papers in the analysis. Results from scientific studies emphasize KPIs such as patient outcomes, operational efficiency, technical reliability, and cost-effectiveness. These include measures like improvements in condition management, patient satisfaction, consultation numbers, waiting times, and cost savings. Institutional documents from entities like the WHO also show diverse perspectives, focusing on equitable access, clinical excellence, patient prioritization, response times, and patient and staff satisfaction. The findings suggest that adopting a comprehensive set of KPIs and continuously monitoring and evaluating telehealth services can enhance their effectiveness, efficiency, and equity, ultimately improving healthcare outcomes and accessibility.

Keywords: digital healthcare; key performance indicator; quality; telehealth; telemedicine.

Publication types

  • Review

Grants and funding

This study is carried out in the framework of the project “Telemedicine for the home management of patients with chronic diseases and comorbidities: analysis of current models and design of innovative strategies to improve the quality of care and optimize the use of resources: TELEMECHRON study” (grant: NET-2018-12367206—Bando della Ricerca Finalizzata 2018 of Italian Ministry of Health). The article review brings forth a portion of the work conducted by the team of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Work Package 2. The project was funded directly by the Italian Ministry of Health and by regional institutions (Tuscany and Lombardy Region) and the Provincia Autonoma di Trento. The APC was funded by Daniele Giansanti.