title: A new form of communication between rheumatology and primary care: The virtual consultation.
abstract: In recent years, the prevalence of rheumatic diseases has increased. The virtual consultation of rheumatology could help to avoid unnecessary visits and attend those who need an early visit. The virtual consultation is associated with telemedicine and telecommunication. The objective of this study is to describe the characteristics of all virtual consultations performed in the Rheumatology Service during a one year period. More than a 50% were resolved without giving the patients an appointment. With virtual consultation we have achieved: 1) a closer contact with primary care, 2) rapid resolution of doubts about rheumatic disease in patients, 3) improvement of training in rheumatic disorders and 4) prioritizing those patients requiring early assessment by a rheumatologist.
authors: Servicio de Reumatología, Hospital Universitario de Canarias, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canarias, España. Electronic address: btejerasegura@gmail.com.
authors: Beatriz
authors: B
authors: Tejera Segura
authors: Servicio de Reumatología, Hospital Universitario de Canarias, Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Canarias, España.
authors: Sagrario
authors: S
authors: Bustabad
mesh_terms: D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D017060:Patient Satisfaction / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D019114:Remote Consultation; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012216:Rheumatic Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D012219:Rheumatology / Q000379:methods*; D013030:Spain
keywords: Consulta virtual; Reumatología; Rheumatology; Telemedicina; Telemedicine; Virtual system