Using Theory-Based Frameworks to Identify Barriers and Enablers of Physicians' Telemedicine Adoption and Develop Intervention Strategies in China: Multicenter Qualitative Study.

Background: Telemedicine is developing rapidly, presenting new opportunities and challenges for physicians and patients. Limited research has examined physicians' behavior during the process of adopting telemedicine and related factors.

Objective: This study aimed to identify perceived barriers and enablers of physicians' adoption of telemedicine and to develop intervention strategies.

Methods: Three interlinked frameworks, the Theoretical Domains Framework (TDF), the Behavior Change Wheel (BCW), and behavior change techniques (BCTs), were used sequentially to identify the factors for physicians' telemedicine adoption and to develop intervention strategies. First, guided by the TDF, a questionnaire was developed and administered in interviews with 36 physicians from 29 different medical institutions in Beijing. Second, the content of the semistructured physician interviews was analyzed using the software NVivo 12.0 to extract themes under each domain. Each theme was then classified as either a barrier or an enabler based on the physicians' language and expression. Third, following the established relationships in the literature, we mapped each domain in the TDF to the corresponding intervention functions and policy categories within BCW. Fourth, for each identified intervention function, we further identified the associated BCTs using the standardized mappings reported in previous studies. The process of identifying intervention functions, policy categories, and techniques was guided by the APEASE (acceptability, practicability, effectiveness, affordability, spill-over effects, and equity) criteria. Last, potential implementation strategies were proposed via focus group discussion.

Results: We identified 50 themes in relation to the adoption of telemedicine. These comprised 27 barriers and 23 enablers, ranging from administrative issues to specific clinical conditions. Of the 14 TDF domains, 11 domains were mentioned. The most frequently mentioned domains were environmental context and resources (10 themes), beliefs about consequences (9 themes), and emotion (7 themes). Major barriers comprised limited acceptance among senior physicians, inconsistent system performance, inadequate platform usability, and inadequate medical insurance coverage. Key enablers included sufficient communication skills and proficiency in system operations, together with the conviction that telemedicine may assist patients with resolving medical issues and prompt support from the IT department when challenges arise. Additionally, 7 of 9 intervention functions, 6 of 7 policy categories, and 26 of 93 BCTs were selected for each theme. Finally, we proposed several potential implementation strategies to enhance physician adoption of telemedicine.

Conclusions: This study identified a range of interventions and strategies that could improve telemedicine adoption in this context. Implementing these measures requires efforts from health administrative departments, medical institutions, and health care personnel.