A study considering the views of 13 people with “CFS/ME” and (or) fibromyalgia in relation to remote medical appointments – such as those conducted online or telephone – has highlighted the importance of “feeling heard, valued, and believed” by health professionals – whether consultations are conducted remotely or in person.
The study also identified that although remote appointments were beneficial for some participants as they removed the need to attend the surgery in person, telephone appointments were not without limitations including increased communication difficulties, lack of physical examination, and unpredictability due to a lack of set appointment time.
Since March 2020, remote and digital appointments have become more common across GP practices, and according to the researchers, are something that are set to stay. Understanding the benefits and drawbacks of these types of appointments for different groups of people is important to ensure that care which prioritises the needs, preferences, and values of patients (person-centred care) – which is especially important for people with complex illnesses such as ME/CFS – can still be achieved.
One of the limitations recognised in this study was that of the 13 participants, only one was from a Black and Minority population despite recruiting from GP practices with diverse patient groups. More research is needed to work with people from these groups to identify how taking part in studies such as this could be made more inclusive. It would then be important to use these methods to consider views of people from these underserved groups on remote appointments in healthcare.
