A rapid review of the effectiveness of remote consultations versus face-to-face consultations in secondary care surgical outpatient settings

The use of remote consultations and telemedicine approaches significantly increased over the pandemic. There is evidence that some patients still prefer this mode of care delivery and time saving may also enable additional consultations and help to reduce waiting lists. However, the effectiveness of remote consulting for certain specialities, such as surgery, is unclear. The aim of this review was to investigate the effectiveness of video or telephone consultations, particularly focusing on clinical, patient reported and safety outcomes, in adult secondary surgical outpatient care during the COVID-19 pandemic. 14 studies were identified. These were published in 2021-2022. Evidence is low or very-low quality due to observational study designs, small sample sizes and patient selection. Policy and practice implications: Evidence is of low quality but suggests that for many surgical outpatient consultations, remote consultations are as effective as in-person consultations. There is potential for time and cost savings for remote consultations compared to in-person consultations. High quality research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of remote consultations to understand which patients and which surgical specialities would benefit most. Funding statementThe Wales Centre for Evidence Based Care was funded for this work by the Wales COVID-19 Evidence Centre, itself funded by Health & Care Research Wales on behalf of Welsh Government.