Telemedicine adoption in Ecuador: an assessment of physician perceptions and knowledge towards its benefits and limitation

Telemedicine is a growing field with the potential to improve healthcare delivery, however it is important for a proper implementation to understand how physicians perceive the benefits and limitations related to their use. With this study our aim is to assess the perceptions and knowledge of telemedicine among a sample of Ecuadorian healthcare providers. We conducted a cross-sectional online survey-based study where participants answered a 12-item survey assessing their knowledge and perceptions towards telemedicine. Demographic variables were analyzed applying descriptive statistics, and a chi-square goodness of fit test was used to assess the observed frequencies of each of the surveys queries. In total, 382 participants completed the survey with an average age of 51.3 years (SD, 11.4). Around half of participants expressed to be lowly to very lowly familiarized with telemedicine technology ({chi}2(4) = 88.497, p = .000). Most of them considered to a high extent that telemedicine is effective in reducing costs of patient care in hospitals (32.5%; n=124; {chi}2(4) = 78.812, p = .000). Finally, 8 out 10 participants expressed that a framework should be created to prevent breaches of data confidentiality when using telemedicine ({chi}2(4) = 250.749, p = .000). In this study we found a considerable proportion of physicians reporting low familiarization with telemedicine despite being aware of the benefits it can bring to patient care. Breaches of data confidentially and the potential for malpractice were cited as main concerns in need of a framework to prevent them. Future studies are needed to address the perceived barriers of technology to ensure a safe and efficient use of telemedicine in the healthcare setting.