Physician perspectives on electronic consultations for specialty care delivery for patients: implications for person-centered medicine

Background: Electronic consultations between primary care physicians and specialists can innovate care delivery for patients. We aimed to evaluate the effect of electronic rather than face-to-face consultations with primary care physicians and specialists on the quality of patient care. Methods: We surveyed primary care physicians and specialists physicians at the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, in relation to the effects of this mode of specialty care delivery on the quality of patient care, patient satisfaction and physician workload. Results: Eighty-five percent of specialists said that electronic consultations can be effective if the specialist has access to the patient’s history and laboratory and imaging results. Eighty-one percent of the primary care physicians surveyed said that electronic consultations allowed them effectively to manage the needs of their patients. Fifty-seven percent said that the consultations improved the quality of care and 43% said that they did not alter the quality of care. Conclusions: The majority of primary care physicians and specialists, when surveyed, indicated a strong interest in electronic consultations for the provision of specialty care.