Preferences, willingness, and demand among doctors in relation to internet hospital consultations: A discrete choice experiment
Background: This study aimed to investigate physicians’ preferences in relation to Internet hospital consultations and to explore the factors influencing their choices. The study also assessed physicians’ willingness to participate in Internet-based hospital consultation services and the demand amon...
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| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
KeAi Communications Co., Ltd.
2024-03-01
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| Series: | Informatics and Health |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2949953423000024 |
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| Summary: | Background: This study aimed to investigate physicians’ preferences in relation to Internet hospital consultations and to explore the factors influencing their choices. The study also assessed physicians’ willingness to participate in Internet-based hospital consultation services and the demand among physicians to do so. Methods: A total of 119 physicians from two general hospitals and three specialized hospitals in Beijing were selected for a questionnaire survey using a discrete choice experiment design. Physician preferences were analyzed using conditional logit regression. Findings: In descending order of importance, physicians’ willingness to engage in Internet hospital consultations was influenced by changes in doctors’ share of online diagnosis and treatment performance compared with offline consultations, daily working hours, and response time. Physicians were more likely to choose Internet hospital consultations when there was a 20 % increase in the proportion of online consultations compared to offline consultations, a 10 % increase in the weight of online consultations in the annual assessment, a 1-hour reduction in offline working hours and a 1-hour increase in online working hours, and a response time of less than 24 h. The subgroup analysis revealed variations in physicians’ preferences based on age, professional titles, working years, and department. Younger doctors, those with fewer professional titles, and those with less work experience had higher expectations. Compared to internal medicine and pediatric doctors, surgeons exhibited a greater willingness to work longer hours. Interpretation: Increasing the proportion of online consultations, including online consultations in the annual assessment, reducing offline working hours, extending online availability, and ensuring timely responses can incentivize physicians to choose online hospital consultations. This approach promotes the high-quality development of Internet hospitals by combining economic and noneconomic incentives and optimizing workload distribution. |
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| ISSN: | 2949-9534 |