Why Australians are choosing DTC telemedicine
A new study completed by Macquarie University and published in JMIR Formative Research has provided key insights into why Australians are increasingly using direct-to-consumer (DTC) telemedicine services instead of traditional healthcare providers.
With the rise of DTC telemedicine services in Australia and internationally, the reasons why users choose these platforms and how they integrate them with their usual healthcare behaviour was unknown. This study aimed to find out the perspectives of Australians using DTC telemedicine services and investigate their reasons for seeking care, any benefits, and any concerns.
82.9% of DTC telemedicine users reported feeling more in control of their health concerns after using the service.
Understanding the results
What did the study find?
To understand more, a web-based survey was conducted in 2023, collecting responses from 151 Australian adults who had accessed DTC telemedicine services, looking at demographics, experiences with traditional general practice, reasons for choosing DTC services, and perceived benefits and concerns.
The study revealed that:
- Convenience and flexibility were the primary reasons for choosing DTC telemedicine, with 80.2% of respondents responding that their main reason for choosing DTC telemedicine was the ability to access healthcare at a time and place of their choosing. Additionally, 58.7% highlighted that the freedom to choose services online without rigid appointment schedules was also a priority for them.
- Most users felt empowered by DTC telemedicine, with 82.9% saying they felt more “in control” of their health concerns and 78.5% reporting they felt "in charge" of their healthcare decisions. Additionally, 71.9% believed they had better knowledge about their health conditions after using the service.
- Despite high satisfaction with traditional GP care, 86.8% of respondents who had seen a GP in the past year reported being satisfied. Users rarely discussed their DTC telemedicine use with their GP. Over half either never (40.4%) or rarely (16.9%) raised it, suggesting DTC telemedicine is meeting a separate, previously unmet need rather than simply complementing existing care.
- Concerns were relatively uncommon, but where they existed, they centred on the cost of services (34.8%) and data privacy (27%), rather than quality or safety issues.
DTC telemedicine and the unmet needs gap
The findings suggest that DTC is not simply a substitute for GP visits, but is instead addressing needs that traditional primary care has struggled to meet: access to specific treatments, greater convenience, and a stronger sense of patient agency.
Very few respondents used DTC telemedicine to complement traditional care, such as seeking second opinions or checking symptoms. Most self-initiated their use (84.8%), and the majority had never been referred by a healthcare provider. This points to DTC telemedicine carving out a distinct role in the healthcare landscape rather than overlapping with it.
