Perception on phone medical report to family members of patients admitted by COVID-19 to emergency observation rooms of a tertiary hospital: A cross-sectional study

Introduction Medical reports of patients admitted to the emergency services has been modified due to the social distancing needed in the COVID-19 epidemic. For this reason, it is essential to know the family members' perceptions about telephone medical reports. Objective To determine the perception of care by family members of patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 on telephone medical reports in a tertiary hospital's emergency room in Lima, Peru. Methods A non-experimental cross-sectional study, through a survey of family members of patients with COVID-19 admitted during July and August 2020. The "External user satisfaction survey of the Ministry of Health" adapted to this setting was used due to the absence of similar studies. Information, respect for the user, efficiency, accessibility, suitability, security, and overall satisfaction were considered. The sample size for finite populations was selected from 2 936 family members, obtaining 347 surveys from 641 calls. Relatives were called by phone, and after acceptance, the survey was sent to them via WhatsApp in Google Forms format. Once the survey was received, it was analyzed using descriptive statistical techniques. Results We made 641 telephone calls with a response rate of 54.1%, obtaining 347 surveys. The mean age was 40.12 years (standard deviation: 11.93 years), with 61.4% of females and 38.0% married. We found that 65.1% received higher education and that Chorrillos was the most prevalent district (10.1%). Moreover, 42.4% of those surveyed were children of hospitalized patients, 17.3% were spouses, and 85% were not health personnel. We found a high level of agreement in overall satisfaction (73.2%) and in most dimensions, including information (88.8%), respect for the user (82.1%), efficiency (70.3%), accessibility (75.8%), suitability (79.0%), and security (87.9%). Conclusion The telephone medical reports to relatives of patients hospitalized due to COVID-19 in the emergency room found an overall satisfaction of 73.2% . Telephone medical reports are essential alternatives to improve the quality of care during the COVID-19 epidemic.