Telemedicine with special focus on allergic diseases and asthma—Status 2022: An <scp>EAACI</scp> position paper
Sylwia Smolińska, Florin‐Dan Popescu, Elena Izquierdo, Darío Antolín‐Amérigo, Oliver J. Price, Alberto Álvarez‐Perea, Ibon Eguíluz‐Gracia, Nikolaos G. Papadopoulos, Oliver Pfaar, Filippo Fassio, Karin Hoffmann‐Sommergruber, Stephanie Dramburg, Ioana Agache, Marek Jutel, Helen A. Brough, João Fonseca, Elizabeth Angier, Cristina Boccabella, Matteo Bonini, Audrey Dunn Galvin, Peter G. Gibson, Radosław Gawlik, Farah Hannachi, Ömer Kalaycı, Ludger Klimek, Rebecca Knibb, Paolo Maria Matricardi, Tomás Chivato
Abstract
Efficacious, effective and efficient communication between healthcare professionals (HCP) and patients is essential to achieve a successful therapeutic alliance. Telemedicine (TM) has been used for decades but during the COVID-19 pandemic its use has become widespread. This position paper aims to describe the terminology and most important forms of TM among HCP and patients and review the existing studies on the uses of TM for asthma and allergy. Besides, the advantages and risks of TM are discussed, concluding that TM application reduces costs and time for both, HCP and patients, but cannot completely replace face-to-face visits for physical examinations and certain tests that are critical in asthma and allergy. From an ethical point of view, it is important to identify those involved in the TM process, ensure confidentiality and use communication channels that fully guarantee the security of the information. Unmet needs and directions for the future regarding implementation, data protection, privacy regulations, methodology and efficacy are described.