70% of mothers say they take care of their children’s health alone, and 28% have equal management of this parental task.
- The conditions of performance and coverage as well as the prices governing teleconsultations were defined in June 2018, by an amendment to the medical agreement.
- Any doctor can use teleconsultation, regardless of his specialty, sector and place of practice.
According to a new survey*, mothers see e-health as a way to lighten their mental load: more than half of them (57%) emphasize the beneficial effects of e-health on managing parenting tasks. 37% highlight the time saved by the end of unnecessary trips. 15% say they can thus better reconcile their working day and the children’s medical appointments. On the other hand, they are only 5% to think that e-health will allow a more equal sharing of the health of their child with the father.
Fathers pay little attention to the health of their children
Nearly 70% of mothers declare that they take care of the health of their children alone, and 28% have equal management of this parental task. Another striking figure: only 2.6% of mothers believe that the father mainly takes care of the health of his children.
A finding that can also be found in the analysis of the structure of Qare, a specialist in teleconsultation in France: 75% of pediatric teleconsultations are carried out by mothers. The main reasons for teleconsultation for children are: prescription renewal (42%), fever (19%), as well as vaccination prevention appointments (8%). Next come questions related to allergies (6%), digestive disorders (4%), teeth (3%) and ears (3%).
Nearly a quarter of mothers have already used teleconsultation
Long shunned by the French, the new e-health solutions available to parents are beginning to become commonplace, especially since the Covid-19 pandemic. Nearly a quarter of mothers have already used teleconsultation, including 15% since the health crisis, and 36% plan to use it if necessary. Mothers with large families were already more used to using teleconsultation before the Covid-19 crisis: 16% used it before the virus, and 6% got into it during the pandemic.
Asked about the advantages of teleconsultation, mothers indicate that it allows, in order of importance: to make a quick appointment, without waiting time (32%), to make a medical appointment outside the doctor’s office opening hours (28%), to have a video consultation with a healthcare professional without having to travel (24%) and to see your pediatrician on vacation or when traveling (10%).
In which cases to teleconsult?
Pediatrician Julie Salomon explains: “teleconsultations in pediatrics find all their relevance for symptoms for which parents are not sure whether it is necessary to consult face-to-face, in what time frame, what they can or cannot do while waiting, or what to give or not give. During the Covid-19 period, for example, when travel was complicated, and there were many worries, having their pediatrician quickly on video was very valuable for many parents, and if he is not available, having an opinion of ‘a fellow pediatrician provides a reliable and reassuring answer’.
Dr. Julie Salomon completes: “pediatric teleconsultation is useful for parents, for a wide range of reasons (vaccination prevention appointment, minor pathologies, treatment follow-up, etc.) in addition to visits to the pediatrician’s office. It is also important that the teleconsultation solutions respect certain conditions, such as: the possibility of having child accounts linked to the parent accounts (father AND mother), with a health record accessible online and teleconsultation reports sent to the attending physician. Mums expect teleconsultation to have a real medical follow-up logic.”
From main obstacles identified in real access to paediatricians, 30% mothers raise the issue of waiting times and 20% the long distance between the first pediatrician and their home.
*Survey carried out from May 18 to 25, 2021 by WeMoms for Qare, on a sample of 1,115 responding mothers (59% have 1 child, 31% 2 children, 10% 3 children and more // 17% have children between 0 and 6 months, 8% between 6-12 months, 6% between 12-18 months, 23% between 18-36 months and 46% 36 months and over).
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