Telemedicine and smart working: Spanish adaptation of the European Association of Urology recommendations

Gómez Rivas, J.; Rodríguez-Serrano, A.; Loeb, S.; Yuen-Chun Teoh, J.; Ribal, M. J.; Bloemberg, J.; Catto, J.; N’Dow, J.; van Poppel, H.; González, J.; Esteban, M.; Rodriguez Socarrás, M.

Introduction Telemedicine provides remote clinical support through technology tools. It can facilitate medical care delivery while reducing unnecessary office visits. The COVID-19 outbreak has caused an abrupt change in our daily urological practice, where teleconsultations play a crucial role. Objective To provide practical recommendations for the effective use of technological tools in telemedicine. Materials and methods A literature search was conducted on Medline until April 2020. We selected the most relevant articles related to “telemedicine” and “smart working” that could provide valuable information. Results Telemedicine refers to the use of electronic information and telecommunication tools to provide remote clinical health care support. Smart working is a working approach that uses new or existing technologies to improve performance. Telemedicine is becoming a useful and fundamental tool during the COVID-19 pandemic and will be even more in the future. It is time for us to officially give telemedicine the place it deserves in clinical practice, and it is our responsibility to adapt and familiarize with all the tools and possible strategies for its optimal implementation. We must guarantee that the quality of care received by patients and perceived by them and their families is of the highest standard. Conclusions Telemedicine facilitates remote specialized urological clinical support and solves problems caused by limited patient mobility or transfer, reduces unnecessary visits to clinics and is useful to reduce the risk of COVID-19 viral transmission.